The Captain's Shield
by abetha0808
Summary: Steve's been alone for 90 years, but a walk through the park has the potential to change that. When he meets a shy artist, he realizes that she has the ability to heal his long-broken heart. OC/Captain America Post-Avengers.
1. A Walk in the Park

**Hi guys! So, this idea has been eating away at my brains for months! And I decided to finally let the plot bunny loose! This is my first long story and it's also my first romance that I don't intend to kill everyone in...sooo let me know how it is!**

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It had been another bad night.

Steve had been ravaged by nightmares, flashbacks, and painful memories for the last six hours, and he couldn't take any more. He pulled on his SHIELD sweatshirt and blue jeans and left the tower for a walk. Usually, he went to the gym and beat Hydra out of his mind, but he felt emotionally exhausted. _"Hitting things doesn't solve every problem,"_ he reminded himself. The soldier had no destination when he began, but he soon ended up in a park that looked out over the Hudson. It was still cool at five am, but the April morning showed promise of becoming a sunny day. Steve leaned against the railing and stared out at the churning river. It was grayer than he remembered it. The buildings were higher, the streets were busier, and life was faster. Steve tried to be positive about the current century, but it was hard sometimes. _I like the Tower, I love my team. _ He recited in his head. _I like my new motorcycle, I like new movies. I like Chinese food and Bruce's bad puns._ Steve had compiled a mental list of good things about the current time, and when he longed for the forties, had taken to reminding himself. It usually worked fairly well. _I think Natasha's obsessive gun-polishing is funny. I love when Bruce and Tony argue about physics that no one else understands. I like Clint's sensibility and sarcasm. I love DVR and the Brady Bunch. I…I… _Steve sucked in a sharp breath and clenched his teeth. _I miss Bucky. I miss Peggy and I want to go home. No! I like cheese steaks and I like fast cars. I love…do I have anything else to love?_ Steve let his head rest on the rail and allowed the sadness to wash over him for a moment. He took a steadying breath and straightened up to look at the river again. Then he felt someone watching him. Steve's eyes widened. He slowly turned, eyes scanning for a threat. On a bench behind him was an old man reading a newspaper, and a girl bent over a sketchbook, blonde hair blocking her face. A toddler slept in a stroller that a young couple pushed along the path. A squirrel darted behind a tree. Steve turned around again. _Wow. I'm really getting paranoid, aren't I? Pathetic. Tony would laugh at me and Bucky-_Steve stopped that thought there. Bucky wouldn't do anything because he was long dead. His brow furrowed as the feeling of being watched came back. He heard a nervous swallow.

"Um, excuse me?" Steve spun around again. The blonde-haired girl stood in front of him, sketchbook hugged tightly to her chest. _Ah ha! I was being watched. _She was biting her lip, and her expressive green eyes reflected her obvious nerves. Steve almost smiled. _She's more nervous to talk to me than I am when I talk to girls!_ Strangely, he drew comfort from the thought.

"So you're who was watching me," he said. She grimaced.

"I'm sorry, I probably should have asked first," she apologized, "I-um, I'm an art student at NYU, and I'm taking this class on human expression. I came here for inspiration, and you were right there and-" she spoke quickly, "Well, I kind of drew you. Can I use it for a piece?"

"You drew…me?" Steve was confused. _What would she bother with me for?_

"Yeah," the girl pulled an escaping lock of golden hair behind her ear, "You just had a very interesting expression on your face. I wanted to capture it."

"Can I see it?" Steve asked hesitantly. The girl hesitated too. She looked down at her sketchbook anxiously, then turned it so he could see. The soldier gasped. It was like she'd taken a picture. But somehow infused it with feeling. He looked at the graphite image of himself leaning against the railing, the Hudson in the background. "It's just a pencil sketch," the girl said quickly, "It'll get better, I promise."

"No! Don't change it at all, it's amazing...just...wow," Steve continued to stare in awe at the drawing. "You're great," he said with a smile at her. The girl ducked her head and blushed. The movement accentuated her height. Or lack thereof. _Jeez…she's tiny._ He looked her over again. _ This little thing can't be more than five foot two. _Steve cleared his throat. "So…what emotion were you trying to capture here?" The girl paused and studied her drawing again.

"I would say…longing. And sadness. But also wanting to be happy. Maybe trying to move on?" Steve was impressed with the accuracy of her perception. "Bad breakup?" she guessed. The soldier laughed tightly.

"No, but you were right about everything else," he said. She grinned.

"So I can use it?" Steve nodded. "Thank you so much!" she reached into her worn shoulder bag and pulled out a form. "Could you sign this saying that you give me permission? My professor will need to see it." Steve took her pencil and signed on the line, wondering only briefly if SHIELD would be angry. He quickly decided that he wasn't in the mood to care. "Thanks," she glanced at the paper, "Steve." She turned to go.

"You're welcome," he said, "But I never did catch your name." She paused and appeared to think about it for a moment, pulling her sweater closer against the cool breeze. Steve couldn't help it; a huge smirk broke out on his face. _Did she forget her own name?_ The artist swiftly realized where Steve's thoughts had gone and hurried to explain.

"No! I, okay, my name is Christina, and that's what my mom calls me, but my dad calls me Chrissy, and my friends call me Chris. I wasn't sure which one to say," she said hastily. Steve thought for a moment.

"Does anyone call you Tina?" he asked.

"No," she shook her head.

"Alright, Tina." Tina smiled up at him, a blush creeping into her cheeks once more. The pink somehow made her eyes seem greener. Steve smiled back, feeling strangely light. Then he remembered she had been about to go. And he felt panicked. Steve realized he didn't want her to. What did people do nowadays? _Do people still go dancing?_ _Um…oh! Got it._ Steve was proud that girly movie nights with Pepper and Natasha had paid off in some way. "Do you want to go get some coffee?" he asked, hoping against hope that this beautiful girl would want to spend a few more minutes with a tattered-hearted stranger. Tina's eyes widened, and so did her grin. Steve sighed inwardly in relief as she replied.

"Sure," she said happily, "Where?" Steve's brow furrowed. _Nuts. Think things through, Rogers!_ He chastised himself for not having a place in mind. Thankfully, Tina seemed to realize this. "I know a nice spot," she offered. Steve laughed, feeling a little embarrassed.

"Swell," he said. She looked up at him in confusion. _Jeez! Get it together, Steve!_ Steve bit his lip and frantically tried to cover his tracks. "I mean, um…cool." Tina giggled.

"I like swell. People should really say that more," she replied in her soft voice. Steve couldn't suppress the grin that stuck on his face as they left the park together.

…

Bruce worried as he made breakfast. Nothing was wildly different. Tony was still half-asleep. Pepper was still busy getting ready for work. Clint was being rude to Tony while he still could, Thor was eating like a black hole, and Natasha was cleaning her gun. But Steve wasn't here. Bruce knew that the soldier had had some rough nights, but those usually ended with him in the gym, punching something until he bled. Sometimes he ran a marathon or two. Today, JARVIS informed him, the captain had gone for a walk. His watch did have GPS and a chip to track his vitals attached, so Bruce knew he was still in the city, and still alive. Bruce was still worried. Usually Steve practically sprinted into the kitchen to see the team in the morning. He had left at four thirty, and it was nine thirty now. Where on earth could the soldier possibly have gone to?

"Friend Bruce," Thor began, eyeing Bruce's bacon. The scientist sighed and pushed his plate over. He felt too nervous to eat anyway. Was it too soon to voice his concerns with the others? Would he sound like he didn't trust Steve? That wasn't the issue at all…it was just…it was a big city. Things had changed a lot since his time. Maybe he was lost? Or kidnapped or hurt or having a breakdown or going to commit suicide or getting in trouble or picking a fight or crying or-

"Clint, knock it off, you know he's not awake yet," Steve said as he pulled off his sweatshirt. Clint sighed. Why did his fun always have to be ruined? Bruce released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

"Where were you?" he asked, a bit more sharply than he meant to. Steve jumped a bit, startled.

"I went to the park," he responded, a bit defensively. Bruce nodded.

"Oh. Sounds nice." Steve pulled a few pancakes off the griddle and onto the platter.

"Yeah," he said quietly, "It was." Natasha's ears pricked up at his tone. She looked over at him casually, studying his posture and expression. He caught her look and she smiled a good morning. The spy went back to cleaning her gun until he looked away, then she caught Bruce's eye. They had both realized the same thing. The captain was hiding something. And Natasha was hell-bent on finding out what.

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**What'd you think? How long will Steve keep Tina a secret from his team and from SHIELD? How long can he keep his identity a secret? R & R please :)**


	2. Art Show

**Sorry that took a while to update! Between Sandy and the recent snowstorm I haven't had power a lot. But, enough of my whining! Here it is! :) You can probably expect to see a new chapter by Saturday latest.**

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Tony could tell that something was weird from the way Bruce and Natasha walked in the lab. Bruce seemed wildly unfocused rather than kind of distracted, and Natasha looked like she could kill telepathically instead of with a look. He instructed JARVIS to turn down his music, and set down the faceplate he was repairing.

"Hit me with it," he said spinning his chair to face the approaching pair. Bruce pulled his glasses off and fiddled with them, clearly feeling uncomfortable. He glanced over at Natasha, but she seemed even more unwilling to speak,

"Um…" Bruce began slowly, "See…we…uh…well, we had been…noticing…that uh-"

"Whaaaaat?" Tony whined impatiently, "Dude, get to the point." Bruce scowled.

"Steve's been acting…strangely lately. He won't talk about it. He's changing all his routines without any obvious reason and he gets defensive when we ask about it. It's weird," Bruce finished with a shrug.

"Frankly, I'm worried about him," Natasha stated. Tony leaned back in his chair and drummed his fingers on the lab table.

"And you absolutely hate when anyone has secrets of any kind from you," Bruce added impishly. Natasha opened her mouth to retaliate, but Tony cut her off.

"When you say strange…" the billionaire paused for a moment to choose the word he wanted, "Do you mean…happy? Like how he's always got that kind of stupid smile on? And he actually sleeps sometimes?"

"Well…" Bruce started cautiously.

"Yes," Natasha finished briskly. Tony raised his eyebrows and studied his friends.

"So he's finally gotten adjusted to modern times, recovered from some serious PTSD, finished mourning for everyone he ever knew, and…that's bad?"

"No, Tony," Natasha said, frustrated, "If that was it, I'd be overjoyed. I just think…if that was what happened, he wouldn't be sneaking around. He wouldn't act shady and weird any time we wonder where he went. He's doing something and I think we should find out what."

"It might be totally innocent," Bruce interjected, "Maybe he's taking a class or taking up drawing again. But either way, I'm worried about him, because it might be something else."

"What if he's getting help? Like, psychologically?" Tony wondered. Natasha shook her head.

"He wouldn't. Maybe he knows that he needs it, but he's got a stubborn streak a mile wide." Bruce nodded in acknowledgement. Tony scratched at his stubble as he thought.

"You're right," he finally conceded, "But we should find out covertly. I don't want him thinking that we don't trust him." The other two nodded their agreement and began to hash out plans.

…

Steve left the Tower at nine after a fairly awful night's sleep. Tina had been too busy with an art project yesterday to see him. Steve had come to the conclusion that days without Tina= nightmares and days including his petite art student = sleep. Heading towards the park by the river, he stopped by Tina's favorite coffee shop and bought her a 'frap'. He wasn't clear on all the different kinds of coffee, but he knew what she liked. Personally, he liked plain coffee with just a little sugar best. Not for the first time, he wished that that his metabolism could absorb the caffeine and make him feel less tired. As he walked up the winding path, he could make out the back of her head as she sat on the bench, sketching something. Her sunlight-colored hair fell in loose curls down her back, and her left foot was twitching the way it always seemed to when she was in deep concentration. Steve leaned on the back of the bench to see what she was drawing today. Tina jumped and pulled the sketchbook to her chest.

"Ah! Oh, jeez. Steve, you can't just creep up on me like that!" she swatted his arm playfully. Steve smiled at the easy banter they'd established.

"Good morning to you too," he said, taking a seat beside her. He watched her eyes alight on the coffee he held teasingly in front of her. She reached for it, but he held it back a few inches, gesturing towards the sketchbook. She sighed. "Really, Tina. We've done this every day for the last two weeks," Steve admonished with mock seriousness, "You get coffee and I get to see your drawings."

"Alright," she conceded, swiping the coffee away and dropping the book on Steve's lap. Steve grinned and sat back, flipping to the current page, where he looked at a series of drawings depicting a fish turning into a fishbowl. As always, he was amazed at both her creativity and astonishing skill.

"You know that this is amazing right?" Tina shook her head in denial.

"Steve, that's just a vague idea. I haven't even done the color yet."

"No, I'm not kidding. This is really great," the soldier insisted. Tina blushed and stole back the sketchbook. Steve lifted her chin with a finger and looked into her eyes. "Your eyes look extra green when you blush like that." Tina smiled shyly and looked out towards the river. Turning back, she analyzed Steve.

"And you look extra tired," she responded, eyeing the dark circles under his eyes. Steve shrugged, looking almost guilty.

"I'm fine," he said in a noncommittal tone. Tina paused, studying the exhaustion behind his eyes. She knew he was lying and probably about to fall asleep on the spot, but she let it go. Steve had some serious stuff going on. She didn't know exactly what, but she suspected it had to do with his job. Being in the special forces of the military couldn't be an easy job. She rose from the bench and hauled her bag onto her shoulder.

"Wanna walk me to class?" She was treated to a heart-stopping smile from the nicest guy she'd ever met.

"Sure."

"Swell. Thanks, Steve," she grinned mischievously. He laughed and laced his fingers with hers as they left the park.

…

Steve nervously checked his appearance in the mirror. He wore blue jeans and a white t-shirt that was a bit too fitted for his tastes, although Pepper had assured him it was 'hot'. He pulled on his brown leather jacket, combed his hair one last time, and deemed himself presentable. He hoped his attire was art-show appropriate. Tina had told him that this show was 'casual', and to wear 'normal' clothes, but in his experience, artsy things tended to be fancy. Well, they were in the forties. He'd felt better when he scoped out places for them to go together. Then at least he'd known what to expect. Steve hoped he wouldn't look out of place. He waited until the ruckus that generally went on in the living room reached a peak, and made his exit unnoticed in the midst of all the chaos.

…

Tina glared at her hair in the window. Why oh why did it always have to be curly? Couldn't it just take a day off? She tucked it behind her ears, sighed, and made one more last-minute check to see that all of her art was in its proper place.

"Chris!" her roommate Abby greeted her, "Your station looks awesome!"

"Thanks," Tina replied looking askance at the several paintbrushes and pencils lodged in Abby's hair. Abby seemed to catch her look and groaned.

"I left them all in there, didn't I?" Tina nodded with a giggle and began removing the art supplies from her friend's messy bun. Abby plopped into the stool that Tina had recently occupied. "I hate art shows. It's a shame I love art so much. I heard that Professor Panrell is going to base the grades partly on how many people buy your stuff. I'm scared!" Tina smiled at her friend's nervous rambling. "And-oh wait! Soo…" Abby began, clearly having just been struck by a new thought, "Do I get to meet the famous Steve tonight?"

"Yeah, he'll be here," Tina said quietly, still removing brushes.

"The one you claim is 'practically perfect in every way'? Body like Superman, heart of gold included?" Abby's tone sounded more than a bit dubious.

"He is! Just you wait and see Abigail. Just you wait!" Tina huffed indignantly.

…

When Steve walked into the hall, he was overwhelmed by art. Everywhere he looked, he saw something worth closer inspection. There were sculptures, paintings, sketches, colored pencil drawings, and other types of art he'd never thought of. He would have stayed there, gaping in every direction if he hadn't caught the sound of a voice he knew.

"Just you wait!" He walked around a display and saw Tina fussing with her friend's hair.

"Hi," he said as he approached, still feeling a bit out of place. He was starting to be comfortable around Tina, but more people? It made him nervous.

"Hey, Steve!" she greeted him enthusiastically. He smiled and bent to hug her tiny frame. "Abby, this is Steve. Steve, Abby." Steve reached out to shake hands with a girl whose jaw was dropped in a perfect O. A small part of his brain wondered why Tina sounded so smug…

"Hello," he smiled at the still gaping girl who looked like Tina's alter-ego. She about six inches taller than Tina, with dark, pin-straight hair.

"Oh, wow. I-I mean, hi," Abby stammered, eyes still locked on Steve. The soldier began to blush. He felt hot. He hated people staring at him. Tina, as always, seemed to be attuned to his feelings.

"Let me show you around," she offered.

"I'd love that," he replied, feeling more than a little relieved.

…

As the night drew to a close and Steve walked Tina back to her dorm, he came to realize how happy he'd been. When he was with this short, creative, shy, beautiful, silly, caring girl, Steve found that the brighter side of life was a lot closer than normal. He was on the other side where the grass was greener like her eyes. The raincloud got pushed away by the sunlight of her hair. The sounds of pain and gunshots were drowned in the music of her laughing. He looked down at her in shock from the realization. How on earth did she do it?

"This is me," she said as they reached the dorm, "Thanks for coming." Tina bit her lip and smiled.

"I loved it," Steve responded, "I've always loved art." Tina nodded, her eyes sparkling up at him. Suddenly, a voice in Steve's head began to shout at him. _"Kiss her! Kiss her!" _The rest of him tried to shush it up. _"No! I can't do that!"_ She walked up the first two steps, but stopped when she realized that Steve was still holding onto her hand._ "Why not? Why can't you? Are you chicken? Ha! Some hero you are…America's Hero, afraid of a tiny little girl!" _Steve's brain didn't have a single comeback for the voice.

"What?" Tina asked, laughing lightly. Steve stared at her hair, turned silver in the moonlight, her eyes, framed by dark lashes, and finally, her lips, curved up slightly in a smile. He took a step closer to her and pressed his mouth to hers. It was tender, innocent, shy. It was then that Steve realized that this girl meant a lot more to him than he had been admitting to himself before. The kiss deepened; he tangled his fingers in her soft curls. She pulled herself closer to him and lightly traced where his shoulder met his neck with her fingertips. Steve felt a kind of passion that he hadn't experienced before. It made him feel hot and rushed. Still, he hesitated a little, allowing her to make the first moves. He didn't want to push her too far; he cared about her too much to upset her. Not that he really had any great ideas of what to do, for that matter. And he wasn't exactly sure where modern girls drew the line. Finally, she drew back and kissed the tip of his nose. "Goodnight, Steve." Steve smiled and cupped her cheek.

"Goodnight, Tina." Steve whistled the whole way home. He ducked into the Tower as inconspicuously as possible, knowing that the grin on his face was going to be there for a long time.

Steve didn't have a single nightmare that night.

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**Putting my own name in the story? Yes I did. And I am unashamed ;) While the character is nothing like me, I wanted my name in there...because I said so that's why! So what did you think? Reviews please :)**


	3. Truth or Dare

**Chapter three, here we go!**

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"So, truth or dare?" Tina asked as she leaned against Steve's chest.

"Hmm?" he questioned distractedly. He was wonderfully comfortable here, leaning back on a tree in Central Park, watching the sun start to sink. He was trying to make the most of his time here. Steve was dreading the mission he had to report for at 20:00 today. He was just not in the mood to spend the night writhing in terror, and knew that no matter how few casualties there were, he'd see Bucky dying and fight Red Skull tonight.

"Truth or dare?" Tina repeated.

"What do you mean?" Tina turned around and stared at Steve in shock.

"You've never played truth or dare?!" she exclaimed.

"No," Steve's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Oh my gosh, Steve. Okay that's just wrong. How on earth did you get to be twenty-three without ever hearing of truth or dare?" Steve shrugged, and Tina sighed, and snuggled against him again. "Okay, it's easy. I ask you truth or dare, and you pick one. If you pick truth, I get to ask you a question and you have to answer honestly. If you pick dare, I get to tell you to do something silly and you have to do it."

"Alright," Steve responded slowly. He hoped that her questions wouldn't be ones he'd have to lie about. While he was sure that he should lie to her, wasn't sure if he could.

"Okay, truth or dare?" Steve thought for a moment.

"Dare."

"Oooh, fearless Freddy over here. I dare you to…" Tina's eyes darted around the busy park for a victim, "Go over there and ask that hot dog vendor if the park will still be here tomorrow." Steve laughed, and Tina continued her thought. "You have to insist that someone told you that it wasn't but the paper said it would be!" About after half an hour of straight dares, in which Tina had to flirt with a thirteen year old, Steve had to jump out of a chosen branch on the tree to scare a businessman (only ten feet, a height Steve scoffed at), Tina sang to an old lady, and Steve harassed various vendors with ridiculous questions while Tina had an animated conversation with herself. Finally, she caved.

"Truth." Steve's eyebrows lifted, and she leaned back against him. He wrapped his arms around her while he thought.

"Do you think I'm weird?" Steve's inner paranoia that he stuck out too much in the modern world had surfaced.

"Yes, sometimes." Steve's shoulders sunk a little. "You're about as good as a caveman with anything remotely technological, and there's about four billion pop culture references that don't even ring a bell for you. But, you're charming and chivalrous like no one I've ever known. It's like an old movie. You have an old-fashioned-y-ness that I happen to adore. It's very weird. And awesome. So yeah," she finished, feeling a bit self-conscious. Steve sighed in relief. She had an idea of how out of it he was, but she liked him anyway. The thought was immensely comforting to the soldier. "Truth or dare, weird guy?" Steve grinned and poked Tina in the arm.

"Truth."

"What is your favorite movie and why?"

"The James Bond movies. Gotta love 'em."

"Eh," Tina responded, unimpressed.

"Eh? Eh? He's awesome!" Steve hotly defended the man who reminded him very much of two of his friends. Tina laughed and turned around to face him.

"Fine, fine." Steve rolled his eyes, unconvinced.

"Truth or dare? Even though you don't like double-oh seven."

"Truth, you big meanie." Steve pulled his fingers through her curls.

"Who's your favorite Avenger?" he asked with a rakish grin. Tina yanked her hair back behind her ears while she thought. Steve held back a laugh.

"Probably Black Widow," she finally decided.

"What?!"

"Or Captain America," she added as an afterthought. Steve chuckled, feeling more satisfied than he'd admit.

"Any reasons why?" he asked, still with a huge smile on his face.

"Well," Tina began, clearly still deep in thought, "Black Widow is just so badass. It's awesome that a girl can kick butt the way she can! But Captain has always had a special place in my heart. When I was little," she laughed a little at the memory, "I used to have really bad nightmares. I had a Captain America doll and I imagined that he was going to protect me." Tina giggled. Steve laughed openly, and traced her jaw.

"You never know," he said, "He might." Steve smiled but had a strange seriousness in his eyes. Tina just couldn't figure him out sometimes.

"Your turn," she reminded him.

"I don't really feel like getting up…truth," Steve said languorously.

"Why don't you sleep, Steve?" she asked quietly. Steve tensed and bit his lip, unsure of how to answer. He decided to stick to as much of the truth as he possibly could.

"I…hm…well…" he frowned, searching for the right words, "I've been through a lot of…stuff. Sometimes I have bad dreams that are really hard to shake off. And I think about what happened in the past and whether I could have done anything better. I think about my best friend a lot."

"Was he in the special forces with you?" she asked, displaying her usual astounding perception. She studied the turmoil in Steve's sky-blue eyes.

"Yes. He was." Steve let his head fall back against the tree trunk and closed his eyes.

"Were you there?" Tina almost whispered the question. Steve nodded.

"It was my fault." Steve bit his lip again. _"Don't you dare get sappy in front of her, Rogers. Toughen up." _Tina pushed his hair back from his forehead and scooted closer to him. "We were on a train…" Steve trailed off, unable to continue. Tina didn't push him. She could sense that he was fighting off tears, and it upset her. She knew Steve had a very old fashioned view of how men should act, and Tina was sure that emotional sensitivity wasn't something he felt comfortable with. She kissed his cheek, then wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest.

"Okay." Steve pulled her closer to him, feeling his heart beat with hers. He cleared his throat.

"It's seven thirty," he mumbled into her hair. Tina's stomach dropped. No matter how 'easy' or 'safe' he claimed this was going to be, she worried for him.

"Oh." Steve stood, pulling her up with him. He bent down and kissed her; softly and tenderly as a whisper. Tina's eyes began to fill. She hugged him tight to hide her emotions. "Please be safe," she whispered, trying to convey how much it meant to her in those three words. Steve held her arms and lifted her chin to look into her eyes.

"I promise. You'll see me Wednesday," he said with conviction. _Four days is a long time…_Tina thought. She nodded vigorously. He started to leave the park, heading off to SHIELD headquarters.

"Steve? You're already a hero, you know. You don't have to do anything dumb to prove that," Tina said plaintively. The soldier stopped and replied. He took a mental picture of the sunlight streaming through her hair and her eyes reflecting the green grass. She was wringing her hands in worry, brow creased and biting her lip.

"I won't do anything dumb, but what makes you think I'm a hero?" Steve asked with raised eyebrows. Part of him wondered if she knew more than she was letting on.

"You're my hero." Steve's heart lurched. He smiled and waved goodbye.

He let the words replay louder and louder until they covered up the sound of gunshots and screaming. The sound of a beautiful voice calmed him and replaced the usual suppressed panic with a cool logic. He replaced the sights of death and blood with sunlight and green grass.

…

Natasha heard Steve calling orders and thought that he seemed even more focused than usual. He fought smarter, more strategically, if that was even possible. She watched his shield arc through the air and take out enemies to his right just as he fought those on the left. As the last man dropped, the shield returned to his hand and he moved on, with an almost surgical precision and detachment. As she studied his face she had a realization. Steve was no longer fighting because he was told to, or to save his friends. He wasn't fighting for an ambiguous "citizens of America". Steve had a reason to go home. It was then that the spy began to question whether she was doing the right thing by trying to find out what it was. Could something that revived the captain's will to live be this bad? If Steve was suddenly fighting to see something again, how bad for him could it be, really?

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**So, what did you think? Is there anything you want to see happen? I'll definitely consider some requests if they don't wildly interfere with the plot I have in my head. P.S. More reviews=Faster Chapters Long reviews=More chapters )**


	4. A Long Mission

**Wow, look at me! 2 chappies in 2 days :) good job with the reviews! keep 'em comin!**

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_Finals suck, _Tina thought in disgust as she slammed an art history textbook shut. She glanced at the calendar, to remind herself that they would be over in just two weeks.

"Aaaannndd IIIIIIIIIIIII will always love YOUUUUUUUUUU!" Abby belted at the top her lungs from the shower. Tina shuddered. Abby had many talents, but singing was not one of them. Tina resisted the urge to fling the door open and yell at her for disturbing her studying, but she wasn't getting anything done anyway. She sighed and decided to work on her final project for the Human Expressions class she was taking. She spread the sketches she'd selected as possibilities out on her neatly made bed. There was Abby, making a disgusted face as she was tricked into brushing her teeth with shaving cream. Her mom, frowning in concentration. Her other roommate, Emma, screaming as though the world would end. (She had run out of mascara.) And there was Steve, leaning against the railing in the park, longing for god knows what. Tina had tried to pick unconventional expressions so that her piece would stand out. She knew that the professor would get pretty sick of the same smiling portraits. Tina lifted the sketch of Steve and traced his face with a fingertip. _He'll be home tomorrow,_ she reminded herself, attempting to push the worries out of her mind. Tina put the chosen sketch on a stand and started painting the fresh canvas set up on her easel.

…

It was Friday. It was Friday afternoon. Wednesday had come and gone and Steve wasn't back yet. He couldn't call her when he was on a mission, either. So she had no idea what was going on. He could just be delayed for some dumb reason. Or in mortal peril. Tina drummed her fingers on the desk in front of her, not hearing a word her professor said.

She was not an obsessive girl. She didn't sit around thinking _"I will just die if I don't see Steve every single day."_ Did she enjoy seeing him often? Yes. Could she live without seeing him for a week? Certainly. She was a twenty two year old woman, not a whimpering teenager. What she couldn't deal with was the growing likelihood that her worries were true. Tina shook her head and tried to concentrate, but the what ifs were circling persistently around her mind. _What if he's really hurt? Or got hit in the head and has amnesia? Or needs surgery? Oh god…what if he got kidnapped? Or tortured? What if someone shot him? He could be...dead. _Tina sucked in a deep breath and ended the thought there. She could hardly even think the word, much less have to deal with it. Soon, she became conscious of something tugging on her arm.

"Hey. Chris? Helloooo?" Abby pulled on her, "Get up! Class is over. Unless you feel like sitting here." Tina mechanically packed her things and left with her friends, but her mind was miles away.

…

The tiny cave was jam-packed. The freezing rain was relentlessly pouring in sideways, something that even the God of Thunder couldn't seem to stop. It was bitter cold, and although it didn't seem to bother Tony in his suit or Thor; Bruce, Clint, Natasha, and Steve were feeling it. Steve especially hated the cold. It reminded him of that horrible feeling of slipping into ice-cold darkness he felt while he was, as Tony often said, a 'Capsicle'. Steve would have loved to be anywhere but this horrible, cold, wet, dark cave in rural Russia. Really. Anywhere. They were surrounded on all sides by enemies with the last vestiges of the Hydra weapons, and it was going to take SHIELD another twelve hours to get there.

It was a horrible night all around. Steve stared at his watch for most of it, realizing that they weren't going to be home until Friday, earliest. He wondered if Tina would worry. A small, selfish part of him almost hoped she would. It wanted her to care about him like he would care about her. Steve wanted to cry. He wanted to sleep. He hadn't had a moment of sleep in the last fifty hours and he was tired and cold and miserable. But he didn't do any of that. The captain had a job to do.

"We've got the go, SHIELD's here," Tony stated suddenly, after receiving the call. Steve scooted (with difficulty) to the back of the cave and woke the rest of the team.

"Bruce? Hey, Brucie. Good morning," he said. Bruce lurched forward, glasses crooked and hair sticking up. "Feelin' angry today?" he asked gently. Bruce nodded with understanding and scuttled out of the cave, almost immediately becoming the Hulk as the rain and bullets pounded down on him.

"Go! Go! Widow and Hawkeye, to me! Stark, get the distance guns! Thor and Hulk, take out all vehicles!" he shouted as the team streamed out into the center of the valley. They were literally in a hole. All around and above them, gunmen lined the crater lip. "Attack plan two beta charlie! Go!" Thor flew directly up, disappearing into the night as Tony turned on his hand-blasters and spun like a top, taking out the men on the lip. The Hulk jumped up the side of the crater and began ripping apart the tanks, while Thor smashed up the helicopters above. Steve covered Natasha and Clint with his shield until Tony swooped down and pulled the pair of assassins up, depositing them on the ground with the enemies where they wreaked havoc. Steve stood alone in the center, deflecting beams of light to hit other men. He hated seeing the old Hydra gear out again. It made him sick. Thor came and lifted him out of the pit as the Helicarrier came into view. "Now!" Steve signaled to Thor. Thor dropped him, and Steve flipped midair to land on his feet. The captain threw his shield to the right, dropping at least six men. He dove to the left, dodging a blast from one of the rifles. Steve gasped in pain as he caught the edge knife against his head. He ducked and seized the man's foot and threw him at his comrades, taking them out. The supersoldier caught his shield again as it ricocheted off a nearby tank. He jumped to the top of the tank to take stock of the situation. What he saw did not make him happy. It was going to be a long night.

…

Tina drudged down the front stairs of her school, mind still occupied with worries.

"Hey, Chris, is that…?" Emma trailed off and stared at the bottom of the steps. Tina followed her gaze, and there he was. He was wearing his leather jacket that she loved, leaning against his red motorcycle. The wind tousled his neatly cropped golden hair and he smiled up at her, blue eyes winking in the sun like gems. Tina dropped her bag and sprinted down the remaining steps, jumping into his open arms.

"Steve," she whispered, holding him as tightly as she could. Tina was so relieved and overjoyed; she just couldn't get any other words out. "Steve."

"I missed you, beautiful," he said softly in her ear. Tina felt the warmth of his cheek flush after his words and she kissed him gently. He laced his fingers in her hair, and she momentarily was astounded by the fact that he could support her entire body weight in one arm. That thought quickly was drowned in his tender kisses. Tina pulled back to look into the eyes she'd missed so much.

"Steve!" she gasped, unable to believe what she hadn't seen before. There were minor scratches and bruises all over his arms, and she was willing to bet they extended to the rest of his body, too. But the most shocking wound was a long, bloody scratch on his left temple that traced the side of his face down to his jaw. She raised a trembling finger to the laceration. Steve shrugged, uncomfortable.

"You shoulda seen the other guy." Tina shook her head in disbelief. _How on earth could he be that stubborn? Does he realize how bad this cut looks? _

"I thought I told you to be careful," she admonished, "And not to be a hero or anything." Steve grinned and kissed her cheek.

"The uniform makes that kind of hard." Steve's grin was wildly contagious; Tina soon found herself smiling with him. She wiped the smile off and arranged her features in an expression of mock seriousness.

"You're late," she reprimanded. Steve's expression was at first one of surprise and confusion, but it melted into a slight smile. He closed his eyes and chuckled under his breath. Although his reaction confused her, Tina wrapped her arms around his neck again. "I'm so glad you're home," she whispered. Steve was content to hold her there forever, snuggled in his arms, until he realized they had an audience. Tina's friends stood a few steps up, staring and giggling. He was unable to stop the blush that came to his cheeks. Tina followed his look and matched his flushing cheeks with her own. Steve gave the gossipy crowd another look over.

"Let's go," he said to Tina, pulling a helmet for her out of the seat compartment.

"Where?" she asked as Steve adjusted the helmet on her head. When he was satisfied, he sat her on the back of the motorcycle.

"Anywhere we want," he responded as the bike roared to life and pulled them away. Tina wrapped her arms around Steve and let her head rest against his back. She closed her eyes and listened to his heart beat.

Steve smiled as the wind played with his hair and shone on his face. He felt Tina's arms around him and her head on his back. A warm feeling crept into his exhausted body, just from having her nearby. _Oh no. I…I think I know what that is. The question is…do I tell her?_ Fear crept into the captain then. _What if she doesn't feel the same way and I freak her out? What if she doesn't really even like me at all? If I tell her that I love her and she doesn't love me back…will it make our relationship weird? _Steve consciously controlled his breathing. _What would Bucky do?_ he asked himself. Steve thought deeply on his old best pal. _Bucky would tell her right now. He'd say all the right things and she'd love him right back. _A nagging worry voiced itself._ But you're not him,_ it said nastily. _You never say anything right. _Steve shook his head and drove. A while later, he pulled the motorcycle over by Central Park.

They sat at the base of their favorite tree, watching the sun sink. Steve had his arm around Tina's shoulders, and she leaned her head against his side. _If there's ever a moment to say it, it's now, _Steve thought.

"Tina?" he asked.

"Mm?" she turned to face him. Suddenly, his courage deserted him. His heart started pounding. His tongue was dry and his hands felt sweaty. _What if this is a huge mistake?_ Steve ran a hand through his hair nervously.

"Um…I…I was thinking a-about um…" he had no idea what to say. Steve took a deep breath and forced it out. "I love you." _Whew. It's out._ The momentary relief he felt was gone as he realized that Tina hadn't said anything yet. She stared at him with eyes wide. Then she smiled.

"I love you, too, Steve." A breath whooshed out of the soldier as he grinned. He kissed her sweetly, but then with more passion. Steve couldn't remember ever being happier. Even in the forties.

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**Next chapter a certain spy does some recon. Will she find what she's looking for? Is Steve going to come clean? Or have his cover blown? **

**Review! And just wondering, what do you guys think about chapter length so far? Reviewreview :) Thanks everyone!**


	5. A Trip to the Store

**I tried to make a bit of an action scene...let me know what you think of it.**

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Steve had finally bitten the bullet. He was going to 'hang out' with Tina's friends. At least he wouldn't have to sneak out of the house this time. Clint and Natasha were on a mission, Thor was in Asgard, and Tony, Pepper and Bruce were at a science convention in DC. He got JARVIS to disable some of the security cameras, too, just because they freaked him out. Tina had promised that it was going to be easy. Just a movie. Not that bad. Steve was still really nervous. He wanted her group to like him. Steve knew that Tina didn't care whether her friends approved of him or not, but he also knew that she would be happy if they all got along. He desperately hoped that the college kids wouldn't think he was too weird. Her crew was waiting around outside her dorm when he got there. Tina was surrounded by Abby and Emma, her two roommates. While Abby was tall, with dark, straight hair, Tina's opposite, Emma seemed to be a compromise between the two. She was tall like Abby, but with chestnut brown hair that had a gentle wave in it. Three guys stood in the back of the group, tossing a hacky sack.

"Hi," Tina greeted Steve with a smile.

"Hey," he gave her a hug. "Hi, Abby. Hi, Emma."

"This is, oh. Hey guys," Tina called too quietly to be heard over the boys' ruckus.

"OI!" Emma screamed. They all stopped and trudged over. "That's how you have to do it, Chris," she chastised. Tina shook her head as if to say 'never' but continued introducing her friends.

"Steve, this is Pete," she said pointing to a lanky, tall guy who wore hipster glasses and a flannel shirt. "Cooper," a shorter boy with black hair shook Steve's hand. "And Mickey," a blonde with a seemingly permanent grin waved.

"Movie time?" Abby asked pleadingly. Tina laughed and nodded.

"Oh no!" Pete interjected, "There will be no film whatsoever without the proper snackies." Emma rolled her eyes.

"You didn't think of this before?"

"I did!" Pete said proudly. "I came to the conclusion that we should _all_ go together to get said snackies."

"So that we all get what we want," Cooper clarified.

"Oh good," Tina said, "People always forget how much I love anchovy flavored popcorn." Steve gagged involuntarily. _Ew!_ Tina immediately laughed, and the soldier realized she had been kidding.

"Next time I'm taking you out to a bait shop instead of a nice restaurant," he quipped. The group laughed, and Steve felt a glow. He was disproportionately proud of his little joke. _Thank god I'm not embarrassing Tina…or myself.._ They headed off to the corner store to buy food.

Tina stood in the front of the store behind the counter with Emma, comparing packs of gummy bears that hung on the wall. Steve leaned on a rack next to her, listening to Pete's rant on beef jerky with an amused smile. Mickey and Cooper were busy tickling Abby as she attempted to reach the bag of chips they held over her head. Then all hell broke loose. Four men in black burst into the store, guns out.

"Down! Everyone! Down on the floor! Put your hands out in front of you where I can see them!" one of the men shouted. The other three dropped the window blinds, then turned their guns on everyone else. In seconds, everyone was on the floor like the men had asked. Steve's brain was pumping out escape plans like a machine. There was only one flaw: he was terrified to move from his position. He was currently acting as a human shield, holding his body over Tina's. He could feel her breathing and heartbeat speed up. A tiny whimper escaped her and it made Steve even more reluctant to expose her.

"Oh, here we go. You!" the leader of the robbery kicked Steve in the ribs. It made a loud thunk, but Steve didn't make a sound. "Hey!" Another kick, this time followed by an ominous cracking sound. Steve's body tightened in, but he refused to allow the man the satisfaction of knowing that. "Move!" The man bent and put the barrel of his gun to Tina's temple. Steve immediately shifted himself off of her, eyes on the man the whole time. The thief lifted Tina by her neck. "Open the cash register. And the ATM. Now!" Tina gasped and tears began slipping down her face.

"I-I-I c-c-c-can't," she mumbled, eyes wide.

"DO IT!" the man screamed in her face, "I SAW YOU BACK THERE! YOU'RE THE CASHIER! NOW OPEN IT GODDAMMIT!" Tina began to sob. The man moved the gun from her head for just a split second, as he gestured toward the register wildly. But that was all the opening Steve needed. He pulled his knees under him and lunged forward in one smooth movement. The soldier sprung for the gun, ripping it out of the man's hand. With the same momentum, he snapped the man's wrist backwards and was rewarded with a scream of pain. Using the counter as a springboard, he changed direction and dove at the man by the door and took him out by slamming his head backwards into the wall. He lifted the criminal's unconscious body and threw it as hard as he could at the two remaining men. He flipped over the rack between himself and the robbers, landing on one man's torso. Steve stomped his foot, and used the other to deliver a simple but effective kick to the head; hard enough to knock him out cold, but not hard enough to kill, although it was tempting. He finished with a quick punch to the head of the last man, then stood to reexamine the scene. Each of the men was completely out of commission. Tina was pale and shaking, her eyes locked on Steve. The soldier made his way over to her, recognizing instantly the signs of shock. Many things seemed to happen at once. Just as he reached her, her eyes rolled back and she passed out. Noise returned to the store. Everyone who was previously silenced by terror was now shouting in confusion and panic. Steve grabbed Tina as she fell and cradled her in his arms. Steve looked around and realized that before he could concentrate on anything, he needed to restore some semblance of order.

"QUIET!" he shouted. Silence ensued immediately, and all eyes were trained on him. "You, call the police, and I need you to confiscate the weapons. Put them on the counter. You. Use those twist ties to secure their wrists and ankles," he pointed each person with authority, directing them to their various jobs. Steve turned his attention back to Tina while everyone else bustled around. He was fairly sure she had just panicked and blacked out, and didn't think that she would sustain any brain damage, but he wanted to be sure. He knelt on the ground and shook her gently. "Tina? Hey, sleeping beauty. Tina." Tina's eyelids fluttered and opened. Steve breathed a quiet sigh of relief. "Hi, sweetheart. Can you tell me your name?"

"Tina."

"Can you tell me how many eyes I have?" Steve methodically asked questions designed to check the functioning of each part of the brain.

"Two," she whispered.

"Do you remember what just happened?" Tina began hyperventilating again.

"I-I-I but they h-h-had me a-a-and," she sobbed. Steve held her closer and rocked her.

"Shhh. No, you're okay," he soothed. "It's over. You're fine." Tina buried her head in his chest, still shaking uncontrollably. Tina had absolutely no control. She thought she was going to die. And she was scared, scared, scared. She wanted to hide under the covers forever. But not where it was dark. And she wanted Steve. She wanted him to stay and make her feel less afraid. Her attempts to stem the flow of tears were met with consistent failure. She tried instead to match her breathing to Steve's steady rhythm. "It's okay honey, I'm right here now. I would never have let them hurt you. Ever. I promise," Steve whispered comforting words to her. Tina hung on every one of them. She was conscious of him talking to other people. She didn't really listen. She didn't want to hear about 'shock' or 'robbery' or 'guns'. She tuned out the words and just listened to the thrumming bass tones emanating from his chest. She was aware of movement. Tina could feel Steve walking but she didn't really care where. As long as she stayed cuddled close to him it was okay with her. Eventually she realized that he was trying to talk to her. "Baby. Tina. Do you want to go back to your dorm? I think you should probably get some sleep, sweetie." Tina shook her head violently. No way. No way was she letting him drop her off in there. He'd leave her. And she didn't want to answer questions or talk about it any more with Abby and Emma. But she was so tired. And cold.

"I'm tired, Steve," she whimpered almost inaudibly. Even in her current state she thought her voice sounded pathetic. Tina sounded like she might burst into tears again at any given moment.

"Okay, Tina." Steve continued walking, for the first time consciously realizing that his feet had been taking him to the Stark Tower all along. _Well at least there's nobody home. Couldn't have been luckier that way._ He resolved to delete any security footage with Tina on it. JARVIS would do it if he asked. For some weird reason the AI had taken a liking to him, and it was something Steve had learned to capitalize on. He brought Tina into his room and tenderly set her on his bed. He felt a little awkward. Steve had never had a woman in his room before. She held onto a fistful of his shirt and her eyes flew open when he tried to let go.

"No, please," she begged, "Stay?" Steve lay down on his side next to her and she curled up against his chest again.

"I will. I promise." Steve ran his fingers through her hair with one hand. The other arm held her close. He could feel that she was still shaking. She wrapped her delicate arms around his neck and pressed her face into his shirt, still attempting to hide her tears. The captain wiped them away gently with a fingertip. "No one can hurt you here, Tina," he whispered in her ear, "No one can ever hurt you when I'm here. I'll keep you safe. I promise."

"I know," Tina lifted her head to meet his gaze. "You're my superhero, right?"

"Right," Steve replied, kissing her forehead.

As she fell asleep in his arms, Steve felt an immense guilt settle on him. She had to know. He had to tell her sometime. Just not now. Not when she was already dealing with so much emotionally. The soldier resolved to talk to Tina about his identity soon, but first, he wanted to ask someone for advice. Not Tony. He wasn't about to steal a microphone and shout 'I am Captain America' for the world to hear. Maybe Natasha? She was pretty good with subtleties. Plus, Steve had found that he genuinely liked the assassin. She didn't follow him around, annoying him with overprotective whining about how naïve he was. He knew he could trust Natasha. Steve laid his head down and closed his eyes, still hypersensitive to any movement from his girl, but strangely glad she was there.

…

As she walked off the Helicarrier, Natasha went straight into another mission. This one was called: Why is Steve Acting so Weirdly? She checked the coordinates that he'd visited multiple times. Most of them checked out, no problem. Central Park, a smaller park near the river, a coffee shop, some restaurants, a few art museums. Only one was exceptionally weird. A college dorm, by the looks of it. Natasha walked into the lobby and stopped the first person she saw.

"Hey, you," she stopped a gangly kid with fashion glasses. He stared at her in obvious awe. She patted herself on the back internally. Being pretty made for easy manipulation of men. "My friend told me he needs something he left in a room here. He just didn't tell me which room," she laughed as if to say 'what a dope'. Although some would chalk up her seemingly authentic laugh to acting ability, that sentiment was real…but it was directed at the still-gaping college kid. "He's tall, blonde, very muscular. Little dorky…kind of quiet. Seen him?" The guy nodded with a big smile, which Natasha returned to encourage him.

"Sure, Steve, right?" Natasha grinned. _Bingo._

"Yep that's him." The guy told her which room, and before he could say anything else, she flew up the stairs. The spy opened the door, which had been stupidly left unlocked, and looked around critically. Nothing immediately hit her as incriminating, so she stared to search drawers. _Who was this girl that had somehow wrapped Captain America around her finger? _The assassin ripped apart closet storage, under the bed and every desk compartment in search of _something_. Then, the door creaked open again. Natasha's eyes widened. _Oh damn._

* * *

**Oh noes! Nat got busted! But by who? Steve's two worlds are going to collide very, very soon. Reviews, please!**_  
_


	6. Unexpected Meeting

**That took longer than I planned...oops! Now that swim season started it's going to take a bit longer per chapter.****  
**

* * *

Steve felt incredibly content when he woke up. He didn't know if he'd slept that well since infancy. He was warm and for once, he didn't feel tired. Steve felt comfortable and relaxed. _Mmm. Tina's hair smells so good._ Steve's eyes slammed open. _Tina?_ She was still there, snuggled under the blankets next to him, sleeping peacefully. Her blonde curls were strewn around her head and she was still in her jeans. Steve thought he'd never seen anything more beautiful. He watched the sun come up in the window while Tina slowly began to wake up. She wiggled and stretched, yawning. Tina's eyes opened sleepily, but they widened in surprise when she saw that she wasn't alone.

"Oh!"

"Yeah, I had that thought, too," Steve chuckled.

"Well…good morning," Tina said, feeling somewhat awkward. Steve smiled his greeting and tousled her hair further as he got out of bed. Tina immediately reached for her hair. "Oh noooo," she moaned, "It's so tangly! Where's the bathroom? Do you have hair product? Of course you don't. Craaap."

"What's wrong?" Steve asked, confused.

"My hair! I can feel it, it's a haystack!" Steve laughed.

"I think it looks beautiful. But, the bathroom's over there." Tina scurried through the door with her hands on top of her hair, attempting to cover it, which provided much entertainment for Steve. She flicked the door shut behind her. His bathroom was elegant; white tiles, sky-blue walls and stainless steel accents. After a moment of being very impressed with the fact that Steve had a giant bathroom in New York City, Tina glared at her completely crazy curls in the mirror and yanked her fingers through it. _There's no fixing that_, she eventually determined. At that moment, Steve knocked on the door.

"Tina? I'm going to go get some breakfast stuff. Feel free to shower or whatever you need to do. There's towels and things in the cabinet under the sink."

"Okay, thanks!"

"I'll be back in like an hour."

"See ya then!" Tina heard his footsteps disappear and sprinted for the shower. _Take that hair!_ As she toweled off, she stared at her clothes from last night sitting on the floor. _I'd always promised myself I would never do the walk of shame…heck I still wear a promise ring! _Tina pulled on her underwear and tiptoed down three steps into Steve's room for a better look around. The floors were a pale wood and the walls were a sky blue color that was a few shades lighter than that of the bathroom. The floor was depressed a few feet in the center of the room, while about four feet from the wall was the same height as the room she'd just left. There was a king sized bed pushed against the same wall as the bathroom, and it was also elevated to the same height as the top stair. The corner walls were comprised entirely of windows, providing a beautiful view of the skyline. In the window corner, the higher floor came out a little further to make room for the little desk and chair set up there. A love seat and coffee table satin the low center of the room, in addition to a small stereo. Along the high floors, there was a bookshelf and a few dressers. It was beautiful, but Tina felt almost depressed. The room hardly looked like anyone lived here. She kept her room freakishly neat, but this was…surgical. Depersonalized. Sterile. There were almost zero personal effects of any kind. She opened an armoire made of the same wood as the floor and was greeted by a sparse selection of t-shirts. _At least it's not empty. And…mmm. It smells like Steve in here._ Tina gathered the fabric of a blue shirt to her face, breathing in the scent. Almost unconsciously, she pulled it out and put it on, liking the feel of the soft fabric on her skin. Glancing down, she could see the SHIELD emblem on the front of the shirt. _How very typical of you, Steve. Well, if I'm going to steal clothes I might as well go all the way,_ Tina thought. She opened a few other drawers until she found athletic shorts with a drawstring, which she pulled all the way and tied. After drying her hair, neatly folding back the bed's white sheets, and hanging up her towel, Tina decided to explore. She walked up the steps and opened the other door in the room, assuming it was the way out. She wandered down the hallway, which opened up into a large living room. There were a few black leather couches and a minibar, and the biggest TV she'd ever seen. A wall here was made of windows, too. _Where __is__ this place? This has got to be the biggest and most beautiful apartment I've ever seen. _Tina heard a door open and footsteps shuffle in.

"Tina?" she followed the source of Steve's voice until she ended up in a kitchen.

"Hey," she greeted him. Steve smirked and eyed her clothing.

"Nice shirt," he remarked as he put away groceries. Tina looked down and blushed.

"Oh, yeah…um." Steve cupped her shoulders in his hands to get a better look.

"I like it. Looks better on you anyway," he said with a sweet smile. Tina sat in a chair at the kitchen table while Steve began cracking eggs into a pan.

"Thanks," she picked at her nails, searching for the words to say what she wanted to tell him. "Steve?"

"Yeah?"

"I…um. Well, thanks." Steve turned around, looking puzzled. "For, well, saving me last night," she clarified, "And for not being angry that I crashed here. And for…making me feel safe." Tina finished feeling quite vulnerable and stared at the table. Steve pulled out a chair next to her and sat in it. He lifted her chin up.

"You're welcome. And I'm kind of glad you crashed here. Breakfast has always been our thing," he smiled. "And you're always safe when you're with me. But you know something? You make me feel safe, too." Tina giggled at his last statement.

"Why? You think I could do what you did in there? I can't protect myself! Let alone someone else..."

"There's more kinds of safety than just physical." Tina stared into his eyes. This was one of those times she swore they were trying to tell her something. She understood that he was a man of many secrets, but sometimes she wished that wasn't the case.

"Where are we, by the way?" Steve took a deep breath.

"Stark Tower." Tina's eyes grew huge.

"WHAT?!" Steve got out of his chair and started scrambling the eggs.

"You know Tony used to make weapons for the military, before...you know. But he still is close with a lot of the people he knew then, especially those in SHIELD. And I'm a part of SHIELD. That's how we became friends," Steve finished evasively.

"You live with Iron Man," Tina said, obviously still shocked. _And you don't want to know who else I live with! _Steve thought.

"Yes…but call him Tony. His ego is big enough already."

"That's so cool! Have you seen his suit up close? Is it awesome? Does he have that chest-light thing in all the time? Is it really bright? Does it feel hot like a lightbulb? How does he get his beard like that?" Steve laughed at Tina's star stricken flow of questions.

"Yes. The suit is pretty swell. Yes, he'd die without it. It's annoyingly bright. No. With much effort," he responded, still chuckling. Tina smiled widely.

"That's amazing! How come you've never mentioned that you're friends with him before?" Steve shrugged, sliding breakfast plates onto the table.

"I don't know…I didn't really…didn't want you to be overwhelmed?" Steve wasn't sure what to say. He really meant something more along the lines of "if I told you I lived with Iron Man and the Avengers you're going to ask why I'm there too and I hate lying so here it is I'm Captain America". _She has to know sometime. She's got to find out soon,_ he kept thinking to himself. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. Steve was impossibly happy with Tina, and he worried endlessly that telling her who he really was would somehow ruin their relationship. _What if it makes her not trust me? What if it just plain freaks her out? What if it stresses her out and she leaves me?_ No matter what he tried, he couldn't reconcile the thoughts.

Tina raised her eyebrows at his comment, sensing the evasion.

"Sure," she said. She was annoyed. _Why is he acting so weirdly? I tell him everything! And there's obviously a huge amount of stuff happening with him that he's keeping a secret…it's getting really annoying. _

Steve recoiled a bit at her tone. He realized that she had gotten sick of all his half-truths. He was terrified of losing her. Steve steeled himself to tell her the truth. _No time like the present. _He placed his hand over hers.

"Okay, Tina? I-" he was cut off by her phone calendar beeping shrilly. She checked it and immediately gasped.

"No! I have a dorm inspection! Oh my god I didn't clean up after Abby! Or Emma! They're going to fail me, I gotta go." Tina started pulling on her shoes at top speed. Steve panicked. _I have no idea if I'll ever have the nerve to tell her this again…_

"Oh." She looked up, concerned with his tone.

"After I clean up you can come over," she offered. Steve smiled weakly. _Cameras. Cell phones. Security footage,_ the paranoid voice in his head said,_ No good._

"You can come back here if you want. I'll pick you up?" Tina kissed him briefly.

"Awesome. I'll call you then!"

Steve waved from his motorcycle as she jogged away to her dorm, thinking of how she would react to the secret he'd been keeping.

…

As Tina sprinted down her hallway, she noticed that the door was slightly ajar. She rolled her eyes. Abby was being careless again. She flicked the light switch on as she shut the door behind herself. The scene was not what she expected at all.

A redheaded woman dressed entirely in black was frozen in surprise, but was clearly midway through searching the room. Tina's eyes darted around, spotting her sketchbook open on the bed. She opened her mouth to angrily question her, but something about the woman's presence silenced her. Then Tina saw the gun on her hip. Her eyes widened in fear, and her hand searched for her phone. _If I could just call 911…or Steve...maybe I could make it out somehow? _Tina willed herself to not pass out like last time. At the same time, she couldn't believe there was a 'last time'. The woman smirked.

"There's no one who could come fast enough. Don't bother." Tina gasped as the woman strode across the room and snatched the phone out from behind Tina's back. Tina caught sight of an emblem on her black jacket.

"SHIELD?" she murmured. The SHIELD agent turned and analyzed Tina. The art student gulped nervously, heart thumping. She pressed her back against the wall. The spy's eyes were hard and unforgiving. Tina knew she would not hesitate to kill. The blonde fervently hoped that she would move on._ Why is she here? Is she background checking me because of Steve or something?_

"Look," the spy began, "I don't know exactly who you are. I don't really know what you're after either." With this she moved until she stood almost pressed against the petite girl, towering over her five-two frame. "But I don't like you. Not one bit. Know why?" Natasha asked softly as she pulled her favorite knife out of her belt and toyed with it. To her surprise, the girl answered.

"I don't really see you as someone who likes many people," Tina mumbled. Natasha hissed. _How dare this little whelp sass me?_

"Because you're a threat." Natasha growled, jabbing her finger into the girl's shoulder with each word for emphasis.

"Why are you here? If you wanted me dead, I'd be ashes by now," Tina said with fake bravado. The spy laughed softly, seeing through her ruse. The effect was terrifying to Tina, and Natasha could tell by hearing her heart speed up even further.

"Who says you won't be?" the pause following the question had Tina saying a few prayers that Steve would come look for her very, very soon. "No. I don't plan on killing you," continued the assassin, "I have this feeling that dear Steve would be very put out with me if I did that." Tina gasped, and the Russian continued. "You don't know, do you?" she asked, in a much kinder tone.

"Know what?" Tina whispered. The spy's eyes widened and she backed away.

"He hasn't told you yet." Tina's brow furrowed.

"Told me what?" Natasha shook her head and put one leg out of the window.

"I'm not going to tell him that I met you. I'm going to let him tell you in his own time. But…" the assassin's eyes softened, "take it easy on him when he does? He's a good guy you know." She dropped out of sight. Tina stood in shock against the wall. _What is he hiding?_

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**Uh oh! Steve is in deep trouble! What did you all think? Reviews please :)**


	7. Coming Clean

**This chapter got so fluffy! Oh boy...**

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Steve slowly scrubbed the pan he had used for breakfast, going through a mental checklist. He had cleared all security cameras of any evidence that Tina had ever been in the tower. He even wiped down most surfaces for fingerprints and made JARVIS promise that it wouldn't tell anyone she was there. Steve glanced at the clock. _Natasha should be home very soon…I wonder how her mission went. _The soldier sighed and put the last dish away. He turned to walk back to his room, but then jumped when he saw Natasha leaning on the doorway.

"Jeez! You know you're the only person that can sneak up on me?"

"I'm proud of that fact," Natasha said dryly.

"How was your mission? Everything go okay?" he asked. She nodded and followed him into the living room, perching on the arm of a couch.

"It wasn't bad. I'm actually going to do my yearly physical for SHIELD today," she said, looking pointedly at Steve.

"Oh, okay. I'm due for mine in July," he said cautiously, trying to read her face.

"So I'm going to be out all day. Stark, Pepper, and Bruce are still in D.C but they'll be back tonight. Clint is coming with me. Unless Thor shows up out of the blue, you have the house to yourself." Steve analyzed the very strange look on her face.

"Oh…kay?" The spy put a piece of paper facedown on the coffee table. Natasha then gave him a sharp look and exited the room quickly. Steve shook his head in utter confusion. He flipped the paper and saw a sketch of a fish turning into a fishbowl. It hit him like a brick wall. _She knows._ His eyes widened and his blood turned to ice. He sat there, frozen and breathing fast until his phone started to ring. Gingerly, he pressed 'accept'. He hated the phone. It was so weird. It didn't even have buttons for goodness' sake. "Hello?"

"Steve," Tina greeted him sounding slightly breathless, "Come pick me up now."

"Sure! Do you want to go anywhere or just hang out here-"

"Let's just go back to your house. We need to talk." Steve's brow furrowed. _What was going on with the gals today? Were they all mad at him?_

"Alright, Tina."

…

When Tina had gotten over fear, shock, and paranoia, she reached anger. Although fear was still a factor. _Who was that?! Did Steve know her?_ As Steve pulled up on his motorcycle, she resolved that she was going to stay angry at him. So angry. She was going to yell and scream. Then he jumped off the bike and gave her one of his award winning smiles. _NO! No, I'm very angry at you! Very very angry! And you…can't just…damn. I'm not angry anymore. Damn damn. I want to still be angry and I'm not. _Tina sighed at the handsomest man she'd ever seen.

"I'm angry at you," she said very unconvincingly. She wrapped her arms around him and sat on the bike.

"Really?" Steve asked with concern.

"Yes. Now let's go so we can talk about it in private," contrary to her harsh words, Tina snuggled into his back. Steve shrugged and pulled away.

Tina strode into Steve's room and plopped herself in the loveseat. She patted the seat next to her.

"Okay, Steve. Talk." She looked at him through serious eyes. He sat next to her and put his feet up on the coffee table, measuring his breaths carefully. Steve's brain was frantically spitting out ideas, worries, plans and attempting to make some coherent response.

"I was trying to at breakfast," he offered. Tina rolled her eyes.

"And then I got to my dorm and was assaulted by some crazy lady from SHIELD who apparently knows you. Care to clarify any of that?"

"She's on my team. Her name is Natasha," Steve said slowly. "I know she can be…brusque…but she wouldn't have hurt you. Ever. I think the only reason she was in your dorm is because she found out you were with me. She probably wanted evidence that she'd found you." Steve slowly pulled the sketch out of his pocket and unfolded it for her to see. "I still don't know how she found you though. I didn't want my team to know about you at all. You know I'm a captain…I didn't want my team to think I was getting distracted or anything." Steve took Tina's hands into his own and played with her fingers while he spoke quietly. "I didn't think they'd get that you're actually what focuses me more." Tina smiled slightly and squeezed his hand. Steve's voice trembled a little as he continued speaking. "I know I've been kind of secretive. And I'm sorry about that. I hate keeping things from you." A long pause stretched out as Steve stared at the floor.

"Steve?" Tina asked quietly. "Is this about your work?" Steve nodded. "You're not…you're not going to…leave? Are you? They're not going to relocate you to some horrible place far away are they? Please don't go." Tina's eyes started tearing up and her voice broke at the end. Steve pulled Tina closer to him.

"No, no, I don't have to leave. I mean-I will…if you want me to after I tell you. If-if it freaks you out or something, I'll go and you-you'll never have to see me again-"

"No! I don't want you to leave. After you tell me what?" Steve's eyes got big again and he bit his lip. He sucked in a few breaths with some difficulty, holding her close. "Steve? Steve it's okay." Tina cupped his face in her hands.

"What if it's not?" he mumbled, "What if it's not okay?" Tina stroked his cheek and pushed his hair back from his forehead. She was starting to get really upset. _What could be this bad? _

"I love you, Steve," Tina whispered in his ear, "And I'm going to love you no matter what you're going to tell me, okay?" He nodded, eyes still full of fear.

"I love you, too." Steve looked into Tina's bright emerald-green eyes for strength. "I…I'm not sure where to start."

"You could try the beginning?" Tina offered with a slight grin pulling at the corners of her lips. Steve chuckled once nervously.

"Okay. My mom's name was Sarah. My dad's was Joseph. They both came from Ireland and fell in love here in New York City. They got married and bought a house together in the Lower East Side. I was born in July; two months too early. I was always a really skinny kid and had all kinds of illnesses. I had asthma, allergies, I had-"

"1989," Tina interjected. Steve looked confusedly at her. "You said 1922. If you're 23 then you had to have been born in 1989." He shook his head.

"Let me tell my story okay?" Tina sighed and Steve continued. "Anyway, I was sick all the time. Never got to play outside with other kids, never got to make any real friends. I drew instead…I've always liked doodling because of that I guess. The only kid I was ever friends with was Bucky. James Buchanan Barnes, his name was officially. But to me he was always Bucky. He stood up for me when kids would beat me up…which happened a lot. Bucky was the closest thing I had to a brother. Anyway, my dad died in the army when I was really young; I don't remember him very well. My mom worked as a nurse, but when I was thirteen she got pneumonia…couldn't shake it off. She died then. I lived with Bucky after that, and we were as close as anything. Some years later, World War two started." Steve ignored Tina's little noise of indignation and plowed on. "I kept hearing about how many American men were laying down their lives out there, trying to secure freedom for all of us at home. I felt like I had no right to do anything less. I tried to enlist. Five times. I kept getting rejected…I was too small, asthmatic, had scoliosis, heart murmur, and allergies." Steve looked Tina up and down. "I don't think I was any taller than you for that matter. And scrawny as all get out. But I want to serve so badly. It killed me to sit at home when I knew that brave men were dying in trenches every day. Bucky enlisted too. He got into the 107th regiment. Same number as my dad. I was hoping I could be assigned to the same one. The day Bucky left for Europe I enlisted again. I got caught for falsifying my enlistment forms," he chuckled a little. "Dr. Abraham Erskine and I met that day. He was fascinated that I had tried so many times. So he accepted my enlistment and put me in a special group. We trained…I thought I was going to die on those long runs," Steve laughed, "We did push-ups and sit-ups and I got a flag and jumped on a grenade and then he picked me out of the group."

"You jumped on what?" Tina asked in bewilderment.

"A grenade," Steve clarified, "It was a dummy, though. Just a test. Anyway, he picked me out of the group to be the first in an experiment. Dr. Erskine wanted to create an army of super-soldiers with a serum he'd developed. He wanted me to be the first. And it worked. I came out of the lab that day looking like I do now." Steve gestured to his tightly muscled body. "Unfortunately, a Hydra spy tried to steal the serum and the formula got lost. I was going to be the only super-soldier. I fought in the war, and helped bring down Hydra. But one day I was on an enemy plane…and it was loaded with bombs. It was either crash the plane in the water or allow millions to die…so I dove it into the ocean. I still remember how it felt. Freezing to death, except not dying. I can't even begin to describe…well…they found me recently. I got defrosted and now I'm back. Everyone I knew was dead when I woke up. I didn't really have a purpose, so I started fighting again, for SHIELD this time." Tina's eyes were wide as he finished his story. "I think you can guess what team I'm on now."

"You're…" Tina swallowed and stared at their intertwined hands. Steve's were starting to sweat. "You're Captain America," she said in a monotone. "Leader of the Avengers. One of Earth's Mightiest Heroes."

"Yes," Steve breathed. Tina remained still. He wanted to shake her and make her say something. The anticipation and nerves were eating at his insides.

"And you _dare_ have the nerve to tell me that your missions are 'safe'? Or 'easy'?" she said angrily.

"It's hard to lose when you have a Hulk and a Norse god on your side." Tina climbed into Steve's lap and hugged him tightly.

"Well I kind of feel better that you have that shield. I guess that's more protective than standard issue military gear. And you also have Iron Man. And Black Widow and Hawkeye! Is this why you asked me who my favorite Avenger was? I did include you on that list. And you said that Captain would protect me! I see what you did there, mister. He will! He did. Or, well, you will. Because you're him and he's you. Is it weird that I have Captain America panties now? I didn't think it was weird before but now I kind of do," she rambled. Steve's puppy-dog eyes were in full effect and making it hard for her to concentrate. "I still love you, if that's what you're waiting for, you big dummy," she said. Steve's entire body released enough tension to snap an iron beam as he exhaled a sigh of relief.

"Tina," he murmured, burying his face in her hair, "I love you so much. Thank you thank you thank you."

"For what? You're a superhero! What is there for me to complain about?" Steve shrugged and kissed the tip of her nose.

"How about the fact that I'm from 1944?"

"Vintage."

"Still have horrible nightmares and the occasional flashback."

"No one's perfect. And you're still a lot closer than most people."

"Bad with technology."

"Innocent."

"Socially awkward."

"Endearing."

"You really don't care, do you?" Steve asked in wonder. Tina grinned and shook her head no.

"Is that it though?" she asked tentatively.

"Huh?"

"There's nothing else, right?" Tina asked worriedly, "That's it?" Steve threw back his head and began laughing hysterically.

"That's it? I was frozen like an ice cube for ninety years, I'm a shield-throwing, flag-wearing superhero and you say 'that's it'?" Tina giggled along with him.

"I just meant to ask if there was anything else to worry about." Steve smiled and pulled his fingers through her golden curls.

"Well…I'd worry about meeting Tony if I were you. He's kind of a handful. But you already met Natasha." Tina made a noise of disapproval, but Steve smiled anyway. "Clint is kind of quiet. Bruce is really nice, you'll like him," he mused. "Thor is hard to not love, even if he is too loud. They're all coming home tonight. You could stay for dinner and meet them all," he finished, looking into her eyes. Tina gulped.

"Oh boy. Better now than later I guess right?" Steve smiled encouragingly.

"Probably. Especially since Natasha already knows. And JARVIS will probably rat me out eventually."

"I would not have!" the AI interjected heatedly. Tina jumped.

"That's JARVIS. Ask Tony what he…it…is. I really don't understand." Tina giggled.

"Okay, Steve." Steve's head lifted as he heard the elevator doors stop at the top floor.

"Someone's home. Ready?" Tina nodded yes.

She'd never made up a bigger lie in her life.

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**How are the Avengers going to react to a new girl in their lives? Expect some angst soon...because breaking hearts is fun :)**

**Remember to review!**


	8. Meet the Family

**Hi, all! Okay, so I started writing The Angsty Chapter, but then I realized...Tina hasn't met the Avengers yet! Except for in my plot bunny-riddled head. And clearly that needed to happen, so angst shall be postponed to next chapter! But worry not, it will be there! **

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Tina twisted the front of her shirt in her hands to stop them from shaking. Steve's apparent relaxation and contentment was irritating. _I'm about to meet the Avengers! THE FREAKING AVENGERS!_ She was so nervous. _What if they don't like me? What if Black Widow decides to kill me? Or Thor squishes me by accident?_ Tina couldn't understand, why Steve wasn't-oh yeah. Steve _was_ an Avenger. She shook her head a little. _Weird. Just so weird._ The artist started thinking up things to say to make herself seem less awkward. _"Hi, I'm Tina. I don't scream fangirly screams of joy when people bring you up. Nuh-uh, no I do not." _Tina breathed in sharply in fear. Her nerves were fraying. Steve took her hand and led her into the living room, where he plopped himself on one of the large sofas. He opened a drawer of the coffee table and pulled out a sketchpad and a pencil.

"Here," he said, offering them to her. "You need to relax a little. I promise they won't bite," he said with a smile. Tina took the art supplies with shaking hands and sat next to Steve. He threw his arm around her and watched the pencil begin to fly. The lines started out a bit crooked from her quivering, but as they went on became more confident.

Steve was a lot more nervous than he was letting on. He desperately wanted his team to like Tina. Nothing they could possibly say or do would change his opinion of her, but he still wanted her to be accepted by them. Steve hoped that everyone he loved could be together at once. Steve rubbed Tina's shoulder and wondered whether Natasha had told Clint about Tina. It wouldn't really matter, but Steve wanted to know. He was calmly contemplating exactly how furious at the Russian he was going to be. Once he finished calculating how angry he was, he would punish her. Somehow. Maybe. Well, he would hear her explanation out first.

Clint's boots stomped down the hallway.

"Heyyy Spangles! What's up, man? I'm so tired, do you wanna watch a movie or some-" the assassin cut off his words sharply as he caught sight of a second blonde head on the couch.

"Hi, Clint," Steve said somewhat awkwardly. The pair stood as Clint stared at Tina, eyes bugging. "This is Tina, Clint. Clint, Tina." Tina looked up at the still shell-shocked archer through her hair.

"Hm. Well. Hi, Tina," he said offering a hand, which she shook timidly, half-hiding behind Steve.

"Hi," she said meekly.

"You know," Clint said, plopping into an armchair, "I got the name Hawkeye for having uncannily good vision. But I did _not_ see this coming." Steve laughed and even Tina smiled a little. She liked his offbeat sense of humor…it made him more real, less of a celebrity. Tina relaxed a tiny bit.

"That was a horrible pun." Tina tensed right back up. She recognized that voice. "It was a completely inexcusable abuse of humor. And what else didn't you see-oh! Oh that's it," Tony Stark swaggered into the living room, stopping short when he saw Tina. Steve opened his mouth to introduce her but Tony cut him off. "I owe you five dollars, Clint. Good job Spangles. I'm glad you're finally getting some," he said analyzing her. Tina blushed bright red and stared at her toes. Steve whipped a pillow at Tony hard enough to knock him off balance.

"That's Tony. He's a jerk."

"We all know he's a jerk, Steve, no need to reinforce that," Bruce said as he sat in the armchair across from Clint. "But something I think we'd all like to know is who your friend-" Bruce was cut off by a noise of some sort of electrical explosion. Tina jumped, looking around for the source of the blast.

"That'll be Thor," Steve said by way of explanation, while the others continued looking with interest at the tiny blonde. Tina breathed deeply and kept sketching frantically, trying to ignore the stares and her rapidly beating heart. Tina really did not like meeting new people. It made her extremely nervous. Especially when those people were celebrities. And The Avengers. And they were all staring at her and rushing into the room at once.

"MY FRIENDS!" Thor's booming voice carried throughout the entire building.

"Living room, Thor," a quiet but carrying voice instructed. Tina's eyes opened wide. She knew that voice, too. She turned and saw Natasha walking purposefully into the living room, Thor behind her. Tina glared at her, but was surprised when the assassin smiled back. Not even a scary smile. It seemed…genuine. Weird.

"FRIEND STEVE!" Thor clapped him on the shoulder affectionately. It looked like it hurt. "Oh, but who is this? Have you found yourself a maiden, Captain?" Steve smiled and rolled his eyes a little.

"Are you all paying attention now? I don't want to say this more than once," Steve said. Tony raised his hand like a child in school. "No," Steve answered him. "Questions later. Okay everyone, this is Tina. Tina, that's Natasha, Bruce, Thor, and Tony. You already met Clint."

"I met Natasha too," Tina added with raised eyebrows. Natasha's grin widened.

"I really didn't mean to come off so nastily," she offered as an apology. Tina decided to accept it, guessing that it was the best she was going to get.

"You're scary enough without the knife. That was really unnecessary," Tina asserted in her quiet voice. Steve sat up and glared at the Black Widow.

"You pulled a knife on her?!" Natasha sighed and slumped onto the couch next to Thor and Tony.

"I didn't _use_ it. She surprised me! It's kind of a reflex I have when I'm surprised," she explained in a bored tone.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to come back to my dorm when you were searching it. I should have been more considerate," Tina mumbled. Bruce started laughing out loud.

"I like you! Not many people can get away with sassing Natasha," he said. Tina grinned a little.

"She has backbone!" Tony agreed.

"It's okay though," Tina said, "You're forgiven because you were my favorite Avenger."

"Were? Am I no longer?" Natasha asked teasingly.

"Nope, sorry. You could still earn back your spot. If you do something really cool," Tina amended. Bruce laughed again. He liked this little thing. Sure, she was scrawny and shy, but she was adorable and made Steve absolutely glow.

"So, Lady Tina," Thor began in his rumbling bass tones, "You are being courted by the Captain of the American Land, yes?" Tina giggled and nodded her assent. "Excellent!" Thor enthused, "When do you plan on bearing his children?" Everyone began laughing, to the god's great confusion. Tina and Steve blushed and Bruce flicked Thor in the forehead.

"Don't be a dope, Thor. They've only been together for, how long?" Bruce asked.

"Three months," Tina answered. Steve looked intensely confused.

"That's it?" he asked. Tina nodded. "Wow. Feels like longer." Tony rudely stole the sketchpad out from under Tina's hand.

"What's this? Oh! Guys, she drew us!" Tony examined the sketch closer. Tina felt exposed…_what if he doesn't like it?_ "Why am I in shades? I'm not wearing…actually I look real hot! Look how cool I am! Thor, your hair is flowing in the breeze…Clint is stuck to the ceiling like a scared cat…Bruce is reading…Natasha…you're in a dress. Why on earth did you put her in a dress, woman?"

"I-I don't know. I just…like drawing her in dresses?" Tina responded cautiously. Tony freaked her out a little…the guy was just larger than life.

"Aw," Clint pouted, "Why am I on the ceiling? Oh wait! No, I'm holding a bow! I look badass!"

"Where's Steve?" Bruce asked, peering over at the drawing. Thor seized the book and flipped the page.

"Ah! I have located his portrait," he announced, pointing at a drawing of Steve. It was one of Tina's favorite moments. He was leaning against his motorcycle, smiling his wonderful smile, looking beat up but still gorgeous.

"Awww!" Tony gushed, "That's so cuuuuute!" Steve nabbed the sketchpad from Tony.

"Alright that's enough!" The team laughed and tromped into the kitchen for dinner. Steve smiled tentatively down at his little lady. "Overwhelmed yet?"

"Plenty. But in a good way." Steve took her hand and led her to the kitchen.

"They love you. I told you they would." Tina smiled and took the seat next to him.

For the most part, Steve's statement was right. The team was growing to really like Tina. But liking someone doesn't necessarily mean you trust them.

Unfortunately, someone's life was about to depend on this trust.

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**Dun dun DUNNNN! Not gonna lie...I love breaking hearts and making people cry...so muahaha next chapter beware!**

**Also, thanks so much to my reviewers! All the awesome feedback you guys are giving me encourages me so much. You make it so much easier to write! You're wonderful :D**

**Review!**


	9. Night Terrors

**The Angsty Chapter. Ali, you can do the dun duns now, if you still feel the need. ;) Sorry it took so long to update. I lied to all of you :( but it just ended up being a lot longer than I had originally planned and thus took me longer to write. So here ya go! Hope it was worth the wait :)**

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Dinner was a crazy affair. Tina also got to meet Pepper Potts, who attempted to restore some order, but it didn't work that well. Tina liked it. She was an only child, and unused to this kind of clamor at the dinner table. But it was so much fun! Bruce and Thor were by far her favorites. Thor likable and funny, albeit extremely loud. He was charming and sweet, although a bit nuts as far as Tina could tell. He almost threw his cup on the ground, but then caught himself at the last moment, cringing. Tony sighed and set down something that looked rather like a Taser with great disappointment. Tina really didn't know what to make of that. Bruce was kind and quiet. He made her feel comfortable, and did his best to tone down Tony (to no avail…but the effort was nice anyway). Clint was friendly, but Tina could tell he was micro-analyzing her every movement and word. It made her nervous. Tony had the quickest wit Tina had ever witnessed outside of a movie. He couldn't have been more hilarious if he was scripted! Even when she was the butt of 99% of his jokes, she ended up enjoying him. Tony seemed like he was genuinely happy for Steve, despite all the innuendos he kept perpetuating to make the couple blush in sync.

"You know Steve's the captain of something else, too?" Tony asked Tina during dessert. She shook her head no, looking at the genius/billionaire/playboy/philanthropist with interest. Steve frantically shook his head no, silently pleading his friend to stop. "We also call him Capta-" At this point Steve apparently determined that Iron Man was indeed going to go too far, and launched himself across the table and tackled Tony, effectively preventing him from finishing the sentence. Clint started slapping the table and laughing out loud. Bruce sighed tiredly and watched the wrestling pair.

"Tony, don't be nasty," the scientist lectured half-heartedly.

"Yeah," Clint said, still overcome with giggles, "Don't be mean to Captain Virg-" Steve kicked the chair out from under the archer, silencing him as well. Tina's cheeks pinked a little as she caught their drift. But she felt kind of happy, too. She wasn't alone in her beliefs, at least.

Natasha was unexpectedly pleasant. Tina had a sneaking suspicion she was trying to avoid or at least lessen Steve's wrath. The soldier in question had never been happier. All his friends were together and safe and Tina was there with them. The only downside to the night was the thought of lethal Natasha pulling a knife on his fragile, defenseless Tina. He kept a pretty consistent stink-eye going at the spy for about half an hour until he got distracted. The team watched a movie together after dinner. It was their tradition, unless something better was going on. Tonight was Clint's choice: Mean Girls, his favorite. Tina's, too, coincidentally.

Steve drove Tina home and kissed her goodnight. He felt like he could fly. Life was good again. What would be a modern saying? Oh, yeah. Life was 'so fetch'. Steve smiled the whole way home.

A routine quickly became established. Tina would come over the Tower after class, work on art or hang out with Steve. She'd stay until after the nightly movie and go home. Slowly but surely, she was unconsciously wrapping the team around her fingers. Although Clint had been distrustful initially, even he was starting to really relax around her. Thor, Tony, and Bruce had always liked her, and even Natasha was beginning to not feel the need to interrogate her violently.

…

Tina was stressing out pretty badly. She had all her finals this week. She thought she was pretty well prepared, but at the same time was still worried. She desperately wanted to do well. In order to be the kind of artist she wanted to be, she needed to have good grades, so she'd be hired. Tina was therefore spending all her time pouring her heart into her finals, most of which were projects. And Steve was on a 'more difficult' mission with Clint. Because she needed another thing to stress about. She added a few brushstrokes to the portrait she was working on and adjusted the light behind her.

"Abby? Does this look super-realistic to you?" Abby poked her head out from behind the canvas she was working on.

"Mm. Yes. But add a bit more detail to the hair…it's looking a little flat." Tina nodded her thanks and continued her work. She felt her pocket buzz and pulled out her phone. It was a text from Steve. Which in itself was pretty impressive…_he must've been practicing. How sweet. _"Home safe. Going to bed. I will call you tomorrow." Brusque, but hey, it was a start. She responded with a heart, hoping that he would understand it. If not, he could ask her tomorrow. Tina relaxed and glanced at her watch. It was only seven o'clock. She still had plenty of time to work.

…

Steve stumbled into the Tower and dictated a text for JARVIS to send Tina. He felt drained. The mission had been awful. It was successful, but at the cost of hundreds of lives. Steve couldn't get the sounds of men screaming out of his ears. After his shower he changed out of his suit into a pair of soft pants and the t-shirt Tina had worn recently. It still smelled like her. The scent was comforting to him. He washed his hands in the sink over and over again. He could still feel the stickiness of blood on them no matter how many times he scrubbed them. Steve shook his hands dry and stared at his own reflection. There were enormous bags under his eyes that looked like bruises, and there were little scratches on his neck. Steve poked an actual bruise on his arm. Ouch. He didn't even remember getting that. _Maybe that was when…Eh._ Steve didn't feel like thinking about the fight any more. He crawled into bed and pulled the covers over his head, letting himself drift off.

…

Tony was feeling content. Clint and Steve had been passed out for a few hours but everyone else was in the living room. Now that the whole team was home, they all could relax. Natasha was playing chess with Bruce (and about to lose terribly) and Pepper was snuggled up next to him reading.

"Natasha, if you want my opi-" Bruce began patiently.

"No! No, I'm doing this myself," she growled staring at the bored. Bruce sighed and sat back. Pepper turned a page. Tony played his game for a little longer, enjoying the relative silence, except for the quiet music. "Hah! Wait, Bruce don't try to lose on purpose!" Natasha chastised. Bruce chuckled.

"Oh, I'm not. I'm just trying to make it so the pieces spell my name when I win." Natasha glared at Bruce.

"That's it. This game is over," she said in disgust as she stood. Tony heard a sudden smashing noise. The whole team looked around in confusion until a blur of blue and gray came barreling into the room. Steve leaped over the couch like it was a hurdle and smashed into the stone fireplace. He crumpled into a heap on the ground momentarily. Tony jumped off the couch and hurried over to his friend. Then, the soldier's head snapped up, eyes scanning the room like they did on the battlefield. He straightened up and hid behind the pillar, breathing heavily.

"Steve? Buddy?" Tony asked hesitantly. Steve jumped and his eyes widened, but he was clearly still not seeing the Tower.

"I-I-I fought to g-g-g-get here. I ran. I came to save Bucky! And…and...but n-n-now…" Steve sprinted across the room, stopping at the bar. "No, please, please no!" he begged with some unseen force. Steve's face started to crumple up. _Is Captain America about to cry?_ Tony asked himself. He felt panicked and helpless. What on earth was causing him this much pain? He desperately wanted to do something. He wanted to make it better for his friend. And he had no idea what to do. _Who could help? Who __could__ make it better?_ An answer came immediately to his mind. _She's just a frickin kid,_ he discounted the thought._ What could she do? _Steve leaned on a stool from the bar. "I c-c-can't, I can't," he whimpered, tears rolling down his face. "Please don't make me." Steve knelt in front of the stool, resting his head on the seat. Pepper picked up her phone and dialed a number.

"Who?" Bruce whispered as he edged closer to Steve.

"Tina," Pepper said into the phone, "Come right now. Steve…he's sleepwalking or having a flashback or something. Oh, you're already-oh that's great. Run. I don't know but, he-he's not making sense. Come right now." Pepper slammed the phone shut after a monosyllabic answer from Tina.

"Wait, wait," Clint murmured, eyes still glued on his leader, "Can we even trust her? She's a random girl. Steve hasn't even known her that long. What makes you think she'd be able to deal with this?" Natasha nodded her agreement as she tiptoed closer to the Captain.

"She was headed over anyway to show Bruce something, she'll be here in a minute. Too late for your selfish paranoia," Pepper snapped. Bruce was standing just behind Steve then. Slowly the scientist reached out to him, hoping he'd already woken up. Or fallen asleep again.

He was wrong.

Steve's head whipped up at the gentle touch and he spun himself around on the stool.

"Hey, Steve, easy," Bruce soothed. Steve grabbed the chair and held it at arm's length as he backed up to the wall. The soldier's eyes were wide with fear and still wet from crying. "It's okay. We're your friends."

"No! No!" Steve shouted with sudden force, "You-you…you're not my friend! You h-h-hurt me and you killed my friend! It's _your_ fault! But I'm not falling for this! Not again! N-not…n-n-no…" Bruce backed away, palms up. "I-I'm getting out, I'm…" Steve trailed off. Then he threw the stool through the huge window and jumped after it.

Steve was standing in the middle of hell. Red Skull was keeping everyone the Captain cared about in a warehouse surrounded by tanks. But Steve was ready. He'd fought this battle a hundred times over. Steve hurled his shield and struggled through the outer defenses. He reached the warehouse door and started beating it down with his shield. He knew what would be next. Bucky would die. Then he would slowly freeze to death while Red Skull laughed his evil, twisted laugh. The door fell and Steve stepped in, his eyes adjusting to the light.

"How did you get here?" a voice asked thankfully. The soldier gasped in shock. That was the wrong voice.

Plot twist.

His loved ones were all held individually by ropes over a pool of acid. Steve's eyes passed down the line. Tony was there, arc reactor glowing faintly. Clint and Natasha, looking at each other intensely. Bruce was unconscious. Pepper's lip trembled but she held herself together. Thor looked at Steve encouragingly. Bucky also hung there staring relentlessly at Steve. But the worst part was the figure in the background. Red Skull. And he was holding a knife to Tina's neck. Her beautiful green eyes were wide with terror, and tears rolled down her face. He could see her shaking from where he was.

"Steve? Buddy?" Tony asked again.

"I-I-I fought to g-g-g-get here. I ran. I came to save Bucky! And…and...but n-n-now…" Steve didn't know what to do. He sprinted closer to his friends to examine the ropes.

"I wouldn't," a voice with a heavy German accent said nastily. Steve glared at the villain viciously. "You see, Captain," Red Skull continued, "Their weight supports each other. Very clever pulley system. Designed it myself. If you cut one of them down, the rest fall and die. And the fumes from this particular acid happen to be quite potent. The longer you take to make your decision, the more the fumes eat through the ropes. And if you opt to choose this pretty little thing, you have to fight me. If I win, you all die. If you win, you keep her. But by the time you best me, your team will be long dead. Your choice, Captain."

"No, please, please no!"Steve begged, "I c-c-can't, I can't," he whimpered, tears rolling down his face. "Please don't make me."

"I won't make you," Red Skull said quietly, "But everyone will certainly die if you don't choose." Steve breathed deeply, shaking. He could hear Bruce saying something, but he wasn't quite sure what.

"Now Captain! Decide!" A hidden group of Hydra soldiers edged out from the wall at Red Skull's last exclamation.

"It's okay," they said synchronously, "We're your friends." Steve lifted his shield, still frantically trying to come up with a plan that would let him save everyone.

"No! No!" he shouted with sudden force, "You-you…you're not my friends! You h-h-hurt me and you killed my best friend! It's _your_ fault! But I'm not falling for this! Not again! N-not…n-n-no…I-I'm getting out, I'm…" Steve trailed off. Then, he dove for Tina, putting his body between hers and Red Skull's wicked knife. He hoped that his team could forgive him for choosing the one thing he absolutely could not live without.

…

Tina ran into the living room just in time to see Steve dive through the window. Without a moment's hesitation, she ran to the hole, and saw with great relief that there was a walkway that he'd landed on. Pepper grabbed her hand and sprinted out the door, where the other Avengers were circled around Steve.

"I fought you once, I can do it again!" he yelled against the wind.

"Steve, we don't want to-" Clint's sentence was cut off by a monster punch to the gut from Steve. In the same movement, the soldier threw Clint bodily into Thor, who thankfully kept his balance, catching the moaning archer.

"Tina, run! Run!" Steve screamed hoarsely. Tony motioned for the artist to go inside.

"He's dangerous. Bruce is getting some knockout chems. Back up!" Tina shook Pepper's restraining hand off and ran forward.

"Stop," Natasha hissed, catching Tina across the chest with her arm.

"Steve," Tina said plaintively. The soldier's head whipped around to her. His eyes looked black in the lack of light. She ducked Natasha's arm and wrapped her arms around Steve. Only after she did so did she contemplate the possible stupidity of her action. Tina disregarded thought almost immediately. _This was __Steve__. Steve would never hurt me. Ever, ever. He promised me._ Tina felt a tentative hand touch her hair, although he remained just as tense. Tina squeezed him tightly. "You're in 2012. We're on top of the Stark Tower. All around us are the Avengers. And Pepper, too. Oh, and me. I'm here too. Tina. You were dreaming, honey. There's no one here to fight." Steve began to shake. "Let's go inside," Tina said softly, leading him by the hand. Steve's legs gave out before they got to his room. He collapsed in the hallway, trembling and feverishly fighting tears. Steve curled up in a ball, staring out at the Avenger-filled hallway like he still wasn't all the way there. Tina knelt in front of him, still holding onto his right hand. She caressed his cheek with her thumb.

"Tina?" Steve asked faintly.

"Yeah, Steve, I'm right here."

"Tina."

"I love you, Steve."

"Don't go. Please," his voice broke at the end of his plea. Tina pulled Steve's stiff arms around herself and laid his head on her lap.

"I won't. I promise." Steve made a choking noise. "Steve, can you do one thing for me?" Steve looked up at her and nodded frantically. "I want you to cry, please," she said sounding almost detached. Steve's eyes widened with confusion and a touch of fear. Tina put her lips to Steve's ear and whispered, still conscious of her audience. "Real men can cry. They cry because they're tough enough to admit 'I don't know what to do' or 'I'm scared' or 'I'm really sad'. Sissies don't cry because they're not manly enough to admit that they have feelings, too. You need to get this out. You have for a while now." Steve made a weak motion toward his room, and Tina helped him there, tucking him in bed and settling next to him. She felt like her heart was breaking, watching him suffer. Tina desperately wanted to know what he dreamt that had upset him so much. She would have given anything to make him feel better.

Steve cried that night. Tina held him close.

The Avengers slept in the hall, listening to Steve's pain.

Steve held onto Tina like she was a lifeline. She felt like one, at the moment. He was drowning. Sadness, fear, anxiety; everything bad he'd felt since childhood came flooding out. Steve shook with sobs and thought of the countless nights he'd spent almost exactly like this; alone in the dark, overwhelmed with grief and terror. But then he hadn't cried. Somehow not crying was worse then letting go, like Tina had said. But there was something terrifying about releasing all these emotions, too. He knew couldn't have handled it if she wasn't here with him. He felt her hands rubbing his back and her fingers running through his hair. She smelled like vanilla and acrylic paint. Her voice was soft and low, whispering words of comfort. Tina was a candle in the darkness. She was a light bulb. A spotlight. Stadium lights. Try as darkness might, it couldn't get past her radiance. Steve was lulled into a gentle slumber by her heartbeat. He slept under her protective glow.

* * *

**Soooo! Did I make anyone sad? I love to know these things :) What do you guys want to see more/less of? Where do you think Steve and Tina are going to go from here? Any and all comments/requests are appreciated!**

**Thanks so much to all of you who review this thing! You're my inspiration to keep writing. All of you who read and don't take credit for it=naughty list. Well...not really. :)**

**Review, all you lovely people!**


	10. Pancakes for Breakfast

**Sorry to leave you guys on an unsolved dilemma! My play was this week, and swim season started getting intense. :{ Updates should be a bit more regular now, though. **

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Tina slept fitfully that night. The tiniest movement from Steve was enough to immediately awaken her, and her thoughts were keeping her up anyway. She spent the majority of the night comforting Steve, trying to sleep and trying not to cry too loudly. It was a relief when the morning finally came. Steve squirmed a little and mumbled incoherently, throwing an arm around Tina's waist. Tina smoothed Steve's hair back from his forehead and waited for him to wake up. After a while, he blinked a few times, opening his bright blue eyes.

"Hi, sleepyhead," Tina greeted him.

Steve groaned and sat up, rubbing his eyes. He was midway through stretching his arms when the events of last night came flooding back. Steve crossed his arms in front of himself and slumped, feeling extremely embarrassed.

"I-um. I'm sorry, about, well, I-I didn't, it…oh gee," he stumbled through the words. Steve put his face in his hands and drooped further forward, trying to collect himself. "I'm sorry about last night. I really…I…"

"Steve, you don't have to apologize." Tina leaned against him, exhausted.

"I feel so bad, I didn't want you to see that. It's embarrassing…I fell apart."

Tina sighed and flopped back down on the pillows, allowing her tangly hair to fly all over.

"I knew you'd say something like that. You need to…" she threw her hands up in the air, "Agh I don't know. Get over yourself, I guess. It's okay to not be perfect. No one's perfect. So get used to it. No matter if you cry, I'm going to love you, so fall apart when you need to."

Steve turned to face Tina better and lifted a lock of hair off her face.

"What if I bawled whenever we watch sad movies?" he asked, studying her face and the long lashes of her still-closed eyes.

"Sensitive."

"After I have nightmares?"

"Sometimes you need to."

"When you say you love me?"

"Sweet."

"When I get scared at night?"

"You're only human."

"What if…I cry when I'm angry?" Steve asked with a mischievous grin.

Tina sat up immediately, eyes flashing.

"Hey! That was only one time! You have no idea what a jerk this professor is!"

Steve laughed as she tried to beat him with a pillow.

"I was PMS," she growled, "It doesn't even count."

After he fended off the last pillow swipe, Steve got up and started making the bed.

"Okay, okay," he conceded, "It doesn't count. But what's PMS?"

Tina paused midway through tucking in the sheet, eyes wide.

"Oh honey. Hmm. Um…I don't wanna have this conversation," Tina mumbled under her breath. Coming up with a solution, she brightened. "Ask Pepper. She can tell you."

The soldier raised an eyebrow as he threw the last pillow into place.

"Alright…" Steve walked around the bed and hugged Tina. "Really, thanks. I needed you so badly last night, and…I'm glad you were there. I kinda wish I could have you there for all my nightmares," he finished with a chuckle. He stroked her cheek. "I love you. Even though your hair looks like it spent the night in a tornado."

Tina growled and shoved his arm. Steve snatched her hand and pulled her close to his body. The tenderness of his gaze was enough to melt Tina's momentary annoyance, and stood on tiptoe to kiss him lightly.

"I love you, too."

…

Bruce was carefully chaperoning Thor stirring the pancake batter when Tina and Steve walked in, hand in hand. Both were blushing, just a little. _Gosh that was adorable._

"Good morning," he said with a smile. _Steve looks a lot better than he normally does after a night like that…if we could only bottle her. Liquid Tina, for all your night-terror needs._

"Hello, Captain Steve and Lady Tina!" Thor grinned and waved the spatula in greeting, spraying Bruce with pancake goo.

The scientist silently cringed and removed his glasses, fumbling for the sink to clean them. Tony was half asleep, only present because Pepper got annoyed when he slept in to an 'irresponsible hour'. He held an Iron Man mug full of coffee and slumped forward on the table. Clint was also tilted forward, seeing how close he could get to touching Tony's fabulous facial hair without getting yelled at by said billionaire.

"Clint, knock it off. He hates when you touch his face," Steve admonished as he tried to help Bruce clean himself off. Clint scowled and leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest. Tina slid into a seat at the bar next to Natasha, her toes dangling a foot off the floor. She didn't say 'hi'. Natasha didn't really respond to niceties, so Tina had taken to leaving them out.

"How did you sleep?" Natasha asked very quietly, analyzing the dark circles under Tina's eyes.

"About as well as expected," Tina responded.

The spy chuckled softly under her breath.

"Well you look awful," Tony commented.

"Kind of like someone was beating you up…" Clint added thoughtfully.

"But he thought one shiner wasn't enough," Steve finished.

Tina glared at the soldier reproachfully.

"Next time I'll just let you throw yourself and others off the building, shall I?" she said with irritation.

Steve blushed appropriately and shrugged as he took a seat at the breakfast table and began doodling.

"Well, you're officially a hero now. You can go right ahead and move into the tower. Oh, by the way, I got your painting. You dropped it in the elevator," Natasha said, gesturing to a square-shaped trash bag-wrapped package.

"Painting?" a now batter-free Bruce asked, "The one you wanted to show me?"

"Yeah. I just need some fresh eyes to take a look at it," Tina explained.

Steve looked up from his drawing pad.

"Can I see it, please?"

"No. Not until it's done," Tina said briskly as she dropped down from her stool.

Steve rolled his eyes and continued sketching. The artist tried to peer over his shoulder.

"No, no," Steve said, hiding the book and mimicking her voice, "Not until it's done."

"Wait…" Tony said groggily, "Didn't you already, Tina?"

"Already what?" she asked warily.

"Move in? You're here all the time anyway."

"Oh-oh, I, um," Tina stuttered, unprepared.

"Oh please, Tony!" Steve begged like a child. "Pretty pretty please?"

Bruce nodded fiercely in agreement. She was one of the only people he knew who could entertain Thor long enough for him to hide the Pop-Tarts.

"Your key is on the counter," the billionaire said casually, sipping his coffee.

Tina and Steve wore almost identical smiles, while Bruce laughed and pulled the bag off the painting, studying it.

"This is really good…I like this," he said, pointing, "And how this is in color but this isn't…really expressive. The face, I mean."

Tina grinned widely.

"The class is on expressions, so that's good! Thanks, Bruce."

Steve snuck around the bar and stole the canvas out of Bruce's hands.

"Hey, it's me! It's…wow." Steve stared at the painting in his hands. It was the moment they met. He was depicted leaning on the railing in the park, staring out at the river and longing for another time. He was painted in black and white. The river was its usual gray, and the area directly around him was dull in color, but the further away from Steve, the brighter the colors became. Around the edges the colors were disgustingly neon; too pink, too yellow, too blue, too green. It gave the feeling of Steve's down-to-earth era and contrasted it with modern obnoxiousness and fakeness. "It makes me sad," Steve concluded.

"Sorry," Tina grimaced.

"I mean, it's beautiful, but it's depressing."

"I love it. And it was true wasn't it?" Natasha asked.

"Well, yeah," Steve conceded, "But not anymore."

…

Tina smiled as she handed in her final project. She felt fairly good for having had basically no sleep. That could have been because of the coffee Steve bought for her. Or maybe because Black Widow and The Hulk had both praised her artwork. Maybe because said scientist (with the "help" of a Norse god) made very good pancakes. It could have been because Clint let her put syrup on his pancakes without checking them for poison. A part of it probably had to do with Tony's offer.

Tina couldn't have been gladder to be done with school, stress, finals. She was happy, tired, and relaxed. She was not prepared for what would greet her at her new home.

* * *

**Ahhh cliffies! Gotta love 'em right? So, let me know what you guys and gals thought of this chapter! As usual, any and all reviews/requests are welcome. Thanks!**


	11. Unwelcome Guest

**Lil bit o drama :0 In about 2-3 chapters THE BIG THING is gonna go down...so excited I've had this part planned out for so long!**

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The elevator doors dinged open and Tina walked into the house, a little worried. It was unusually quiet.

"Hey, JARVIS?" she asked as she unpacked her bag.

"How may I help you?" the AI responded crisply.

"Who's home?"

"Mr. Stark and Dr. Banner are downstairs in the lab. Miss Romanoff and Mr. Barton left the tower at approximately eleven, however they did mention that they planned on being home about three minutes from now for lunch. Captain Rogers is in the gym sparring with…Mr. Thor."

"Thanks, J."

"Do you know which title our Asgardian guest prefers? Every time I ask he proceeds to hit things with that foul hammer…" JARVIS sounded a bit whiny.

"Title?" Tina asked as she wandered through the kitchen, "Well, he's a prince. So Prince Thor would probably work…his surname is Odinson if that helps you out."

"Thank you very much. However, if I may give you a suggestion? Take a few deep breaths before you go into the living room. Don't tell _him _I told you that, though."

Tina's eyebrows raised immediately in confusion and a bit of fear, but she nonetheless tiptoed into the living room.

He stood with his back to her, long black trench coat covering most of his body. But Tina immediately knew who it was. Around his shaved head she could see the strap of what could only be an eye patch. Her palms immediately began to sweat. She swallowed nervously, and he spun around.

"Christina Adams. Hello. I am Director Fury of SHIELD," he announced, holding out his hand for her to shake.

She obliged, noticing how large his hands were compared to her own, and feeling like there had to be more of a reason that he was there than he was revealing.

"Hi," she said meekly. "So…I guess Steve told you about me?"

"No," Fury said in his deep voice.

"I did," Clint said, stepping out from behind the bar, analyzing Tina with his steely gaze.

"He informed me that there was a civilian living in the Tower, and suggested that I personally inspect you to see if you were a liability," Fury finished.

Tina's eyes widened.

"A liability? No, I won't tell anybody a-anything," she stuttered, her shyness getting the better of her.

Fury barked a harsh laugh.

"Your word is endearing. But not legally binding. I need you to sign several documents and waivers right now. Swearing you to secrecy on pain of death, waivers allowing us to edit the coroner's report in case of accidental death, access to your legal papers, etc. Once you do, I'll be on my way and you can live with minimal security personnel watching your every move. If you don't, I will deport you to some foreign corner of hell where your dear Captain won't find you, or I can silence you more permanently. Either way, you'll never see any of these people again."

Tina stood a step back, eyes widened in fear. _Accidental death? Deportation?_ Her lower lip trembled as she stood before him, completely cowed. Clint looked sideways at Fury.

"That's not what we discussed, Director," he said hesitantly.

Fury silenced him with a look. The elevator announced its arrival with another ding, and Thor and Steve walked out into the living room.

"Director Fury," Steve greeted him respectfully.

Fury continued to glare at Tina, clearly waiting for an answer. She felt like her knees were made of Jell-O, and was trying to resist the urge to hide behind Steve.

"I-I-I, um…" she almost whispered.

"Speak up!" he commanded, "Are you coming to sign these or not? I won't have you floating around this tower knowing things you shouldn't. I will not have the leader of this team unstable because of a foolish, lovesick child. Do you understand?"

"Hey!" Steve took a step in front of Tina. "Don't talk like that to her," he growled. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her behind his body as if to shield her from the Director's glare.

"That was unnecessary, Director," Natasha said coolly.

"Lady Tina will not divulge the secrets of SHIELD," Thor added. "There is no need for her to swear oaths."

"And," Tony began as he strode out, "It's my house. And whoever I want can live here. You have absolutely no right to go kicking people out of my tower."

Fury lifted his chin in defiance.

"I can do whatever I see fit to ensure the safety of my agents and the security of classified information. I see that this girl is a liability. And I am going to correct that."

Steve's arm tightened around Tina.

"Like. Hell," he snarled through clenched teeth.

Fury and Steve were locked in a laser-like staring contest.

"Director, may I speak with you?" Natasha asked calmly. She got no reaction. "_Privately?_" she added forcefully.

Fury dragged his eye away from Steve and gave Natasha a curt nod. They both strode swiftly out onto the deck. The moment they left, Steve turned to face Tina and hugged her tightly. His countenance shifted instantly from anger and aggression to one of love and gentleness.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, "I didn't plan for this. I didn't think he'd come interfere here…this isn't his domain, I just thought he'd…I don't know…stay out."

Tina didn't say anything; she just held on, completely unsure of what she did to provoke Fury this way. Bruce hung in the background, burning a hole in Clint's head with his stare. Pepper wandered into the room, utterly confused.

"What fresh hell is this?" she asked.

Tony put his arm around her waist, but didn't answer, too focused on Bruce.

"What?" Clint snarled, bristling against the glaring scientist.

"Why did you have to do that?" Bruce demanded. "Why'd you go turn her in? What did she ever do to you? Nothing! She's done nothing but try to be your friend. So are you mad at Steve? Is that what this is?" The scientist shouted louder and louder, eyes beginning to tint green. "You're mad at a guy who spends his time taking care of you? You want him to be miserable? Is that it?"

"Bruce," Tony said, putting a calming hand on his shoulder.

Bruce shook himself and took a deep breath.

"No," he growled, storming to the 'fun house' where it was safe for him to become the Hulk. "We're supposed to be a team."

Tony put his hand on Bruce's shoulder and went with him, throwing a look over his shoulder at Clint. Pepper followed. Steve pulled Tina by the hand into his room. Clint stood alone in the middle of the floor, staring down at the ground. _I was trying to protect Steve! To protect all of us…I've been trained that unknown=bad. I'm sorry…I'm just scared._

…

"I know 'unstable'," Natasha began, studying Fury's face, "I know what 'dangerous' and 'untrustworthy' are. I deal with them every day. I hardly trust anyone." She barked a laugh. "That's why I'm good at what I do. I can identify a liability to secrecy. I can spot a potential problem. This girl is not one. She's completely transparent. She couldn't lie if she tried. All she wants to do is be with Steve. She's good for him," the spy finished.

Fury cocked an eyebrow, and Natasha proceeded to tell him about Steve's night terror, and Tina's heroics.

"So he cares about her. And if she decides one day that she's done with him? Or dies? Then how 'good for him' is she?"  
"She won't. You have no idea what she deals with for him," she said with conviction.

Fury narrowed his eye at her.

"If this becomes a problem, in any way…at all….It will be your duty to _solve_ the problem. Captain's got to keep his head in the game. Tell him that if he can't do that, she can't stay. And she'd better keep her trap shut like you say she will."

…

Natasha and Fury re-entered the room. Fury gave Clint a brief nod and left the room.

"What'd you tell him?" Clint asked quietly.

The spy looked at him calmly.

"She's my friend, Clint. I have approximately seven friends in the world. I'm not about to lose one because you're paranoid."

Clint's shoulders slumped and he went back to staring at the floor. Natasha stood close to him and put one hand on his chest, the other cupping his face. "I know why you did it. You think I don't suspect everyone I meet of wanting to kill me? I do. But, I'm learning, honey. Sometimes you need to trust people. Just like I started trusting you, you need to trust others. Okay?"

Clint put his hand over hers, lacing their fingers together over his heartbeat.

"I'm sorry, Nat. I was sorry the minute he got here…he went to far…I just…I…"

Natasha smiled slightly and kissed him softly on the lips.

"I know. But it's not me who needs the apology."

…

Steve sat on the bed, wringing his hands. Although Tina was showering at the moment, he was still picturing her shaken face. He couldn't help but feel guilty. He was infuriated that Clint had brought the Director into this, but also thought that he should have expected it. He heard the shower shut off. Steve sighed and glanced at the clock. It was almost five-thirty, close to dinner time, but it would depend on how tired Bruce felt. The bathroom door clicked open. Steve opened the door hesitantly. Tina was standing in front of the mirror, slowly and methodically brushing out her wet hair. Her eyes looked red. Steve leaned his head against the doorframe, wishing the right words would come out.

"Does…" she began slowly, her voice still sounding rough, "Does anyone else want me gone?"

Steve stepped the rest of the way into the bathroom and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"No. In complete honesty, I can tell you that no one wants you to leave. Clint…is a spy. That's his job and it's one that kind of takes over your personality to a degree. He's terrified of the unknown, unless he's allowed to shoot it. But if Natasha likes you, he'll come around. I promise."

Tina shook her head and turned to leave the room, but Steve lifted her up and sat her on the counter facing him. "I'm serious, Tina. Tony and Thor love you, Natasha loves you, and you saw how mad Bruce was at Clint for bringing Fury into this." Steve tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "More importantly, though? I love you. Anyone that doesn't is just crazy. You're the sweetest little lady I've ever known. It doesn't matter to me who else likes you."

Tina bit her lip and met Steve's eyes. He wiped away a teardrop with his thumb. "I love you, Tina," he whispered in her ear. "And if everyone here decided to kick you out and send you away somewhere, I'd go with you. I don't want to be anywhere that your art supplies aren't junking up."

She chuckled halfheartedly as Steve smiled slightly.

"Anywhere?" she asked.

"Anywhere," he affirmed.

"East Jesus Nowhere."

"I hear it's very nice in the fall."

"Timbuktu."

"We can build a white picket fence."

"Lower Jabip."

"Exotic."

"The arctic circle."

"We'll bring warm coats."

Tina hugged Steve close, burying her face in his chest. He lifted her up and carried her like a child. "I love you so much, baby."

"I love you too, Steve."

…

Dinner was a bit quieter than usual, until Steve remembered that he had a question to ask. "Hey, Pepper?"

"Mmm?" she asked as she chewed.

"What's PMS?"

Excepting Steve, everyone in the room exploded with giggles.

"Oh, honey…" Pepper groaned, "I don't want to have this conversation right now…"

"Why does everyone say that?" Steve asked in utter confusion.

Thor clapped Steve on the shoulder.

"Lady Darcy has discussed it with me…my friend, 'tis a most grievous affliction."

"Not now, Thor!" Natasha begged.

The Asgardian whispered into Steve's ear for a moment until the soldier's face went red.

"Oh. That's why everyone says that."

After dinner, the Avengers wandered into the living room.

"It's your turn to pick a movie, Tina," Clint said quietly. Tina knelt in front of the screen momentarily, scrolling through the holographic display of films. Steve watched Clint carefully, ready to intervene in whatever way he needed to if Clint decided to be nasty again. _He did act pretty nice during dinner…But there's no way I'm letting him hurt her feelings again. I'll pound him the minute he tries._

"Okay," Tina said, "Robin Hood or The Hunger Games?" she asked with a slight smirk.

The whole room laughed and the tension in the room dissipated instantly.

"Let's go with Hunger Games," Clint said, "I wanna pick apart Katniss's every flaw."

Tina smiled, and Clint patted the seat next to his. She sat down hesitantly, looking into his eyes. "Good picks," he said with a slight smile.

The artist relaxed against Steve's side and smiled just a little bit. Maybe he didn't hate her after all…

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**Thank you guys so much for all the reviews/favorites/alerts! You are amazing :) As usual, suggestions are welcome. Review please, my dears! **


	12. Wardrobe Update

**Hi, all! Sorry it's been so long since I updated...you know how life gets crazy around the holidays! Thanks for not ganging up and trying to kill me! XD I hope to be able to update more during winter break. Happy whatever holiday won't offend you ;)**

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Natasha and Pepper formed a human wall in front of Steve.

"It needs to happen," Natasha said gravely.

"Badly. And quickly," Pepper added, nodding seriously.

The soldier's eyes opened wide and he took a step back, shaking his head frantically.

"N-no! Please, I'm begging you!"

Natasha shook her head mercilessly.

"Tony's going to come, too. Just us four. It won't be that bad," Pepper consoled him.

"And you desperately need this," Natasha said.

Steve moaned and put his head in his hands, slumping against the wall.

"I haaate shopping!" he whined.

"Wardrobe makeover!" Pepper sang joyfully, clapping her hands. "It's going to be so fun! And if Tina gets back from checking her results from her finals soon enough, she might meet us there."

Steve's head picked up and he examined the faces of his friends. Natasha was giving him her signature hard-as-nails look, but he could see excitement hiding behind it. Pepper looked like she was about to burst into a happy dance. He sighed and straightened up, recognizing defeat.

"Are you sure this needs to happen? I have clothes."

"Steve, you have six tee shirts, one pair of khakis, one pair of jeans, one pair of shorts, and one pair of sweatpants. It's pathetic," Natasha scoffed.

"It's more than I've ever owned before," he protested.

Pepper grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the Tower, done hearing his weak arguments.

…

Tina almost skipped home. She had gotten straight A's on her finals! Well, almost. She did get a B in Statistics…but considering the fact that she was awful at math, it was still pretty awesome.

"School's out for summer!" she shouted as she danced to her room, "School's out forever!"

"GREETINGS LADY TINA!" Thor waved from the couch.

"Oh, hi!" she said, reddening slightly. _Well…I guess if anyone would not judge me for my singing, it would be Thor…_

"GREETINGS TO YOU AS WELL, ARCHER!"

Tina spun around to find Clint standing behind her, gently placing his bow on the counter.

"You are so quiet!" she exclaimed, "I'm never sure when you're there or not."

Clint smirked.

"It's part of the job description. And don't feel too bad; you're fairly perceptive for a normal person."

Tina brightened.

"Thanks! Hey…wait…"

Clint laughed softly.

"It was a compliment. I have no idea how you survive in this crazy house. You're definitely the sanest."

"Really?" Tina asked skeptically, "What about Pepper?"

"Pep? Nope. To deal with Tony's brand of insanity you need a little crazy in you."

Tina giggled a little.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Clint took a little breath.

"Hey, about-"

"Lady Tina?" Thor asked "Can you help me?"

Thor crouched over a miniature air hockey table which, although it was laptop-sized, looked absolutely infinitesimal next to the Norse god. Tina examined the game and quickly found the problem.

"You need batteries. I think there's some in the closet…come with me," she said leading him down the hallway.

Clint growled under his breath. _I go to be a nice guy, make things better, apologize, and I get interrupted. The universe wants me to be a jerk, I swear._ He leaned against the counter and polished nonexistent dust off of his beloved bow while he waited for Tina to return.

"Eep!" she squealed as something made a loud mechanical thumping noise.

"FEAR NOT, MAIDEN! I SHALL BEST THIS FOUL CREATURE!" Thor shouted.

Clint internally flinched as he heard Mjolnir crunch through a door and begin wrecking whatever had startled Thor.

"No! Prince Thor! Mister Thor! No! Stop that! Oi! Put that disgusting, physics-defying hammer down!" JARVIS shouted over the sound of protesting metal.

"Oh, Thor! It's a washing machine, it's okay. You, um…you bested it already. That's probably enough. I think…yeah this sock just unbalanced it. It's okay now." Tina said softly.

Clint chuckled under his breath as a red-faced Tina and an out-of-breath Thor trudged back to the air hockey game. "Well…we did get the batteries," she mumbled.

"Hmf!" JARVIS huffed snootily.

"Sorry, J," she said apologetically as she snapped the last battery into place.

"Oh I don't blame _you_," JARVIS sulked.

Clint grinned at the sight of the enormous thunder god looking so delighted with his tiny game. The elevator doors dinged open, and Natasha wheeled in a cart loaded down with boxes and bags.

"Whoa, who went on a shopping spree?" Clint asked.

Pepper smiled somewhat evilly and pointed at an embarrassed Captain America. Tina laughed out loud.

"Steve went shopping? And came back with clothes?" she asked in disbelief.

Steve frowned and scuffed his shoe on the floor.

"He came back with _adorable_ clothes," Pepper squealed.

"Classy clothes," Tony added from behind the pile.

"Sexy clothes," Natasha said with a smiled.

Clint threw her a look. "Just calling it like it is, babe," she said as she caressed his cheek. "You're my man, but that doesn't make Steve any less of a hottie."

Steve ducked his head and wished he could disappear. His cheeks grew hot and red.

"Well, let's see then!" Tina said, "How 'bout a fashion show?"

"No," Steve said darkly. "No way. We really should just return all this stuff and save Tony an extra two hundred dollars."

Tony started cracking up.

"Two hundred? You think this giant pile of red-hot, designer label clothing amounts to two hundred dollars? Aw, it's cute how sadly deluded-"

Pepper cut him off with a glare.

"What?" Steve asked anxiously, "It wasn't more than that was it?"

Natasha smiled sweetly.

"Of course not, o child of the Great Depression. Who would ever spend that much on clothes?" she asked with light sarcasm in her voice.

Steve obviously missed that.

"Um, so am I getting a fashion show or what?" Tina asked impatiently, smiling impishly at Steve, who glared at her and shook his head violently.

"Oh boy, are you getting a show," Tony cackled as he pushed an unwilling Steve towards the door.

"What did I miss?" asked a confused Bruce.

…

Steve felt embarrassed and silly, but every new outfit he came out in made Tina's eyes light up like fireworks on the fourth of July. So he decided to man up and deal with it. Also, Tony was feeding him a constant string of death threats if he backed out, soooo….

"Okay, last thing," Tony threw another piece of clothing on the bed.

Steve sighed with relief. _One more thing! Then this torture will end…_Then he picked up Tony's clothing choice.

"No! No. I don't even-no. Not wearing it."

Tony huffed in exasperation.

"Steve, I said get it on. Do it. Or else. I will…so help me I will show Tina THE PICTURES. Remember those, old buddy? Remember Natasha's pretty pictures of you?"

Steve gasped.

"You wouldn't!"

Tony grinned menacingly.

"You and I both know I would. I expect to see your ass in what I picked out, modeling it for everyone. I expect to see this in the next two minutes, or I WILL bring those pictures out," Tony stalked out of the room, confident in his blackmailing skills.

…

Tina relaxed on the armchair. She was very pleased. Natasha, Pepper and Tony had taught Steve how to strut his stuff. Well, they really had forced him, but it was working very well. Tina thought she was going to melt when he came out in that stunningly handsome suit…_I'm dating a superhero. A superhot superhero. Who now is a super-classy, super-stylish superhero. Life does not get better!_ She heard Steve's door close and sat up in anticipation.

"Do I have to?" he asked from the hall.

"Steve. Remember what I just said?" Tony said sharply.

"Yeah, but…this is awkward!"

"One! Tony shouted.

"I don't feel comfortable with this…" Steve whined.

"Two! You know what happens when I get to three?"

"Yikes, okay!"

Steve skidded into the living room. And the girls all gasped.

He wore only white swim trunks with a simple blue and red striped star on the bottom left corner. The trunks were cute, but every female in the room wasn't focused on the design. All female eyes traced his tight, six-pack abs, perfectly shaped pecs, powerful shoulders, and strong arms. _Mine!_, Tina thought gleefully,_ HA! _The white showed off how tan his skin was, and Tina could help thinking that if this wasn't perfection, then perfection didn't exist.

"SCORE!" the Asgardian boomed.

The room exploded with laughter and all eyes turned to Thor, who was still focused on his air hockey game. "I scored!" he explained joyfully.

"So did Tina," Natasha chuckled, nudging her gently as she blushed to her toes.

"Oww owww!" Tony catcalled.

Steve's endurance for being a spectacle had reached its limit.

"Eep!" he squeaked and ran from the room.

"And I just turn green and hit stuff," Bruce said gloomily, "Who can blame me for trying to get _that_?"

"If Tony didn't need me to take care of him like a baby," Pepper said thoughtfully, "I'd be trying to _get_ that, too."

Tina giggled nervously…_this is so embarrassing! Will everyone please stop with the innuendos?!_

"Okay, guys," Clint finally intervened, "You've humiliated the poor girl enough." In a lower voice he made a comment just to her. "See? Said you were the sanest."

A ghost of a smiled pulled at the corner of her mouth.

"New reason to go for a swim, huh?" Tony laughed.

"I actually can't swim," Tina said tonelessly, giving Tony a look.

Bruce chuckled.

"Maybe he can teach you?" he suggested.

Tina threw a glare his way, too.

Steve stormed back into the living room, wearing his old sweatpants and a tee shirt. He poked Tony in the chest.

"I hate you."

Pepper smiled at the furious supersoldier.

"I think we're due for a beach day."

* * *

**I probably should have put a fluff warning in the beginning...oh well! Things are probably going to get serious relatively soon! Oh, and by the way, THE PICTURES is a reference to another fic of mine :) heeheehee! It's called Giggle Fits, if you're curious ;)**


	13. Beach Day

**The Avengers do a beach day! Next chapter is when things get scary, this is all fun and games. (Mostly)**

* * *

The quiet click of the opening door was the only warning Steve had before Tony took a flying leap towards the bed. If not for Steve's insane reflexes, he would have landed squarely on Tina. Thankfully for her, Steve's shoulder took the brunt of the flailing genius's force.

"Wakey wakey eggs and bakey!" Tony shouted as he pounded Steve.

Steve only groaned and halfheartedly tried to push him off.

"Mmmphh!" Tina wiggled and attempted to get Steve's forearm out of her mouth.

Eventually succeeding, she started working on getting the rest of the way out from under Steve's heavy body.

"Get up, lovebirds!" Tony sang.

"Why are you even awake?" Tina asked through a yawn as she continued trying to squirm around her sleepy boyfriend, who was intent on staying right where he was.

"Been up since five!" Tony responded joyfully, "Had a good idea for my suit, but then Pepper told me what we're doing today, so here I am! Waking you up! Now get up, Captain Sleepyhead! Come on it's seven, not that early, O king of the five K at five am!"

Tony shook Steve's arm from where he still sat on the soldier's shoulder. He pouted when it became obvious that his efforts were clearly in vain.

"Wake him!" he said to Tina, pointing. "We're gonna leave in an hour!"

Tony hopped down from the bed and practically skipped to the door.

"Wait! Where are we going?" Tina called anxiously.

"BEACH DAYY!" he shouted back from the hallway.

Tina's eyebrows shot up. _I guess Pepper wasn't kidding about that…_She stared at Steve with determination. _Here goes nothing!_

"Good morning Steve," she said, rubbing his arm. "It's time to get up. We're all going to the beach! It's going to be really fun. But you have to get up. Come on, baby, it's the moorrningg!"

Steve was motionless, face still buried in the pillow.

"Please Steve. Come on. Steve, get up!" Tina shouted as she started shaking his torso, attempting to roll him over.

Tina growled in annoyance and studied Steve's still form. _You wanna make this hard? Fine. Two can play at this game._ She started trailing kisses all over his shoulders. She kissed his arms, his neck, his cheek. Steve's eyelids fluttered open, and he rolled over. Tina gently placed a kiss on his lips, pulling back slowly. Steve leaned into her, eventually coming into a sitting position. Tina grabbed the blankets and quickly slid off the bed, bringing them with her.

"Awhh," Steve moaned, leaning backward again.

Tina popped up and pulled on his hands.

"No! Oh no you don't! Not after all that are you laying down again!" she protested.

Steve smirked at her, fully aware that her pull was irrelevant against his own strength.

" 'All that' was pretty swell, if you ask me," he remarked with a rakish grin.

She rolled her eyes and redoubled her efforts, trying to drag him out of bed.

"Much more pleasant than military wake-up calls," he continued, utterly unperturbed by her meager force on his hands. "Your way is how a man likes to be woken up."

"Well I'm glad you enjoyed it. Now get up, you lazy bum!"

Steve grinned and jumped over her head, landing on the balls of his feet. Tina spun around so quickly that she lost balance and fell over. She couldn't help thinking that although he carefully helped her up and checked to make sure she wasn't hurt, the fact that he was laughing hysterically detracted from the charm of the gesture.

…

Tina felt quite relaxed once they got to the beach. Tony, of course, owned a "beach cottage" which was a lot more like a mansion. The private island was like paradise. It was a warm and sunny, and the ocean sparkled. She sighed happily and dug her toes in the sand. Few people walked by their spot, and all of them were ridiculously famous. _Abby would have died,_ Tina thought as a famous actor walked by casually. Although you had to be either ridiculously rich or famous to even be on the beach, The Avengers drew a particularly large amount of attention. Clint had threatened to kill several men who had made lewd comments about Natasha. And the girls with Steve! Tina growled a little and wished she was big and strong so she could scare them off. Conveniently, Clint had done the job for her with a wink. She guessed that was his little way of saying 'I'm sorry'. _Fine by me!_ Tina saw more red than she'd like to admit to when those nasty, hoe-y, too-skinny, skanky girls had been touching Steve all over and flirting with him. But, he had reacted fairly well. At first he had no idea what to do, then, blushing and stuttering, loudly pointed out his girlfriend. _Yeah!_ Tina had thought, _That's _me _you buncha toothpicks. Back off! _She would have loved to get in their faces and tell them off, but her shyness refused to be put aside. She awkwardly hid behind Clint and contented herself with glaring instead. Tina repositioned her beach chair to watch the boys' new game better. They had already abandoned football and wiffle ball, and it appeared that Thor was in the midst of teaching a new game. Bruce flipped a page in his book from under the umbrella.

"You were right, Pepper," Tina leaned back and sighed, soaking up the sunlight.

"Duh," she responded, putting on sunscreen. "But what about this time?"

"The beach day. It's awesome here."

Bruce laughed and pointed.

"Look at that!" he chuckled.

Tina followed his finger to where the guys and Natasha were creating a human ladder. Thor stood on the ground holding Steve's feet on his shoulders. Steve held Clint's feet on his shoulders. Tony watched incredulously as Natasha climbed up all three men to take her place on the top, where she took a little bow.

"Hey!" Bruce called, "That's unsafe!"

Although his remark was meant as a chastisement, he was grinning ear to ear while he said it, making his argument rather weak. Pepper smiled good-naturedly and wandered off for a swim, wrapping her arm around Tony's waist and bringing him with her.

"Will that fry you if you get it wet?" Tina asked curiously, pointing at the arc reactor.

Tony neglected to respond, only laughing and diving in headfirst. Tina took that as a 'no', and remained where she was, allowing the strong waves to rush over her ankles. Suddenly, she was scooped up from behind and someone was running forward, into the water, booming a deep bass laugh.

"No! Stop!" she screamed in real fear.

Then she was flying. For just a moment, she was launched over the sparkling sea. Then she was under it. Tina flailed and kicked about, beginning to panic milliseconds after she hit the water. _Where is the surface? Where's the bottom? There's no air!_ Tina squeezed her eyes shut in terror.

Steve was chasing the Frisbee when he saw Thor running towards Tina with a grin on his face and arms wide to catch her in. Steve immediately changed directions. _Does Thor remember that she can't swim? He thinks he's being funny, that he'll throw her, she'll pop up, giggle and splash him. Oh jeez. _Just as Steve was about to reach Thor, the Asgardian threw her, quite a distance. _Deep enough that she can't stand,_ he thought in horror. Steve didn't bother saying anything to Thor. He dove into the waves and swam frantically. In only moments, he found her and lifted her out of the ocean, coughing and sputtering.

Tina clutched at Steve like a small child, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him tightly. His body was warm in comparison to the water. Steve held her over his shoulder with one arm and swam to shore until he could stand, about chest-deep. Tina took this time to gather herself. She took deep, even breaths and focused on the water streaming in rivulets down Steve's hair onto the back of his neck. He stood and cradled her like a baby.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

His eyes probed her face, searching. His expression was tender, but still held the ghost of the panic that had recently held him in its grip. His still-unfaded terror was obvious even to Tina, who was still slightly shell-shocked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She smiled weakly in an attempt to reassure him. "I think I was only underwater for thirty seconds. How did you get there so fast?"

He peeled some of her wet hair back from her face, still examining her expression carefully.

"I saw the whole thing. You know Thor was-"

"He was just playing. Don't be mad at him," Tina begged, "He was just kidding around. I don't think he remembered."

"Yeah, I know. That's what I was going to say. I'll remind him," Steve said as he turned slightly, watching Thor slowly wade out towards them.

"No, don't. I'll do it. Don't-don't…I don't know. Don't make him feel bad. I'm okay, and yeah it was kind of stupid of him, but he wasn't paying attention when I said that I can't swim. I've only ever mentioned it once in front of him."

Steve nodded curtly. His bright blue eyes were still full of worry.

"I know."

Tina raised her eyebrows, sensing that he had more to say. He ran one hand through his hair in frustration.

"I never want to lose you," he mumbled. "I need you too much."

He pressed a soft kiss on her hairline. Before Tina could respond, Thor swam up to the pair.

"Tina? Are you well?" Thor asked.

"Fit as a fiddle," she smiled, "Very nice throw, by the way."

He grimaced a little.

"After I threw you…it struck me that you may not have wanted to go into the water. And Tony reminded me that you are unable to swim. I must apologize, Lady Tina."

"It's okay, I'm fine. I bet Natasha would love to get chucked in though," she giggled as Steve rolled his eyes.

Tina let Steve carry her in all the way to the beach. She felt like she deserved it, after having the bajeebers scared out of her. And as long as a shirtless hottie wanted to carry her around, Tina wasn't dumb enough to complain about it.

* * *

**I'll be on vacation for my winter break, so don't expect an update until January. If there is one, then I am a better person than I thought! ;) I promise I'll try though! **

**So what did you guys think? Reviews please!**


	14. Plans

**Sorry, it's short! Just got back from vacation! I figured one small chapter now and one huge chapter tomorrow would be better than one monstrosity of a chapter a week from now!**

* * *

The lights in the elevator glowed softly. Tony leaned against a wall, sighing.

"Fury needs to knock it the hell off with these 5 am mission planning meetings," he mumbled groggily.

Steve nodded in agreement, but truthfully, he didn't mind them too much. He'd always been an early riser. Once he got up, he usually ran ten miles and lifted weights to warm up, then he'd box for a little and try out new attack methods with his shield. The doors dinged open and Steve helped his friend stumble into the kitchen, where everyone else was gathered.

"So where are you going?" Bruce asked casually over his book.

Tony replied in an uncannily accurate imitation of Fury's voice.

"That's classified."

Steve laughed and plopped into the seat next to Thor.

"Istanbul. How many times have we been there? Like five now, right?" he wondered.

"Probably," Clint remarked absentmindedly as he flipped an omelet.

Steve looked around the room.

"Hey," he began.

Natasha cut him off and answered his question before he could ask it.

"Tina's on the phone in the living room," she smirked.

Steve nodded and wandered in. She was standing with her back to him, facing the windows. She wore grey leggings and his favorite blue SHIELD t-shirt. Although he wouldn't admit it out loud, leggings were something Steve happened to love about modern times. As Tony might have said (but Steve wouldn't even think), 'dat ass'.

"Yeah, I know, it's great right? I'm pretty happy about it," Tina said.

Steve couldn't quite make out the responses through the muffled speaker, so he lounged on the couch and waited for her to finish.

"Mmhm. Yeah. Oh, he's great. Yes, he's home. This weekend? Oh, I don't know, I'll ask him. Actually…yeah that might work out. How's mom? Yes, please."

The timbre of the voice changed from a man's bass tones to a higher pitched woman.

"Hi, mommy. It's Christina. Yes, that's me. I did draw you a picture. I'll show it to you tomorrow, maybe…I love you, mommy. Sure, that'd be nice. No, Christmas isn't for a while. When I bring you my picture, I might bring someone I want you to meet. Is that okay?" she laughed lightly, "I know how you love new people. Okay, mommy. Bye."

Tina ended the call with a bittersweet smile.

"My parents," she explained simply.

Steve's eyebrows crunched together in confusion.

"What was that about Christmas?" he asked.

Tina sighed and slumped a little, picking at the edges of her phone case.

"I don't know if you'll recognize the word, it's a fairly newly discovered disease. My mom has Alzheimer's." After briefly checking Steve's blank expression, she realized she needed to explain. "Sometimes, when people get older, they forget things, get confused really easily. Alzheimer's is that, I guess. But the problem is, it's degenerative. It just gets worse and worse."

"I know older people lose their memories sometimes…I didn't know that had a name," Steve noted.

"Yeah," Tina sighed sadly.

Steve hugged her close.

"I'm sorry, honey. How come you've never talked about this before?"

He felt Tina shrug in his arms.

"I don't know. I guess just because it makes me sad." Her voice was muffled against his chest.

Steve held her at arm's length to look into her eyes.

"You've told me so many stories about your parents, though. How did you not mention it?"

"I prefer to just think of the good times, I guess. Although as the disease goes, my mom isn't that badly off. She's happy. Confused, but happy."

Steve nodded thoughtfully and Tina brightened at a new thought.

"But I was talking to my dad, too. He was wondering if you'd wanna come visit this weekend."

"I'd love to meet your parents! I've felt kind of weird that I haven't before. My mom's probably tossing and turning in her grave because I've been dating a girl without asking her father's permission," he laughed at the thought.

Tina smiled brightly.

"Everyone's going to be at my house for the Fourth of July. But we'll probably go back before that…Bruce has been playing with pyrotechnics and I don't want to miss his fireworks! But it won't be awful, I promise! I have some really cute baby cousins. And some crazy ones, too," she rambled excitedly.

Steve smiled softly and wrapped a strand of her hair around his finger. He thought ironically about July Fourth..._ha, ha fate. Good one._ As she spoke, Steve concentrated on wrapping and unwrapping a lock of hair around his finger. He was desperately trying to hide his nerves. _What if they don't approve of me? Will her dad assume that since we're living together we're…fondueing? Will he think I'm corrupting her? Oh gosh. What if he hates me and gets angry at Tina for being with me? I don't want to ruin her family…aghhhh._ Steve took a deep breath. _Get a hold of yourself, soldier. You're panicking over nothing. What would Tony say? Chill out. _

"Let's pack up, then," he smiled and followed her bouncing curls into the bedroom.

…

"So you'll be gone July second to the third," Pepper stated as she typed furiously.

"Yes, but we'll be back at about ten thirty am on the fourth," Tina replied, looking nervously over her shoulder.

"That's perfect. Okay, so Natasha and Tony are taking care of wardrobe and decorations for the night. They're doing a lot of research…it's going to look genuine. Clint bought the tickets gear for all of us. Thor was in charge of coming up with a menu. He actually did a very good job. The only thing I did was remove Pop-Tarts and Cheerios from the list. And Bruce has fireworks covered. So far it looks like your idea is going to go very well."

Tina grinned.

"I hope so! Pepper, you're an angel for organizing all this."

Pepper laughed.

"Anything for our star-spangled man. But you're the one with the plan this time."

* * *

**Mhmm...it appears Tina knows more than she should! She seems to have a knack for that, huh? Reviews please!**


	15. Meet the Boyfriend

"Turn here," Tina instructed.

Steve pulled the silver Camaro into nearly-hidden driveway.

"Almost missed that," he remarked as the gravel crunched under the tires.

"Yeah, that willow has been getting really big. My dad loves it too much to cut it though."

The car came to a stop and Steve examined the house. About two hours from the big apple, the small neighborhood in New Jersey seemed very quaint. The house had white siding and ivy threatening to overwhelm it on the left side. Near the ground it looked as though someone had tried to beat the ivy back, but had given up when they realized their fight would be in vain. There were trees everywhere, mostly weeping willows and oaks. In some places grass grew, in others, flower beds, mulch, or pebbles. The undergrowth of small bushes and little plants took over at the small property's edges. It seemed like a different world compared to the busy city Steve was used to.

"Nothing like the Tower, huh?" Tina smiled self-consciously. "It's little, but hey, there's no place like home."

Steve put his arm around her shoulders.

"It's beautiful. I love it."

He opened the trunk and lifted both of their bags out of it.

"Those probably would have fit on your bike," Tina whined. She loved the motorcycle. _The speed! The excitement! The snuggliness!_

"Maybe this is the modern world, but I really doubt that pulling up on a motorcycle is a good idea when meeting your girlfriend's parents for the first time," Steve reasoned. He looked back at the car. _It's such a pretty car. Brand-new, too. Very nice of Tony to let me borrow it, but I like my bike better._ Steve shifted both bags into one hand and reached out for Tina with the other. He swallowed nervously and tried to look calm. Tina smiled and gave his hand a little squeeze. The door seemed to open in slow motion.

"Chrissy!"

Tina ran up the two steps to the door and hugged her dad.

"Hi dad!"

Her father studied Steve over Tina's shoulder. His eyes were exactly the same shade of green as hers. His graying hair was cropped short, which might have made him look severe if it weren't for the laugh lines and look of perpetual boyishness in his face.

"Dad, this is Steve," Tina stepped back and gestured to him.

"Nice to meet you sir," Steve shook his hand with some trepidation.

"Nice to meet you, too. I've heard a lot about you," Mr. Adams studied Steve closely.

"All good things, I hope," Steve responded with a nervous smile.

Mr. Adams laughed, eyes crinkling.

"Come on in."

They barely got in the door before Tina was mobbed by family members.

"Christina! My daughter!"

A petite woman shoved her way through the crowd of people. Steve instantly recognized her as Tina's mother. Though her curls were shot through with gray, they still had a lustrous shine to them. Her eyes were ice blue, but framed with lashes and the same shape as her daughter's.

"Mom," Tina grinned widely, thrilled to have been recognized and remembered. She hugged her mother gently.

Steve smiled at Tina's obvious happiness. At that moment, he began to feel the eyes in the room turning to him. He tried valiantly, but couldn't stop the blush from coming to his cheeks.

"Oh, honey. Who is that? I like him. He's hunky, sweetheart!" Tina's mother whispered conspiratorially (and loudly).

The room exploded with giggles. Tina blushed slightly, but didn't even come close to Steve's current shade of stop-sign crimson.

"Oh, yeah. Mom, remember I said I wanted you to meet someone special?"

Mrs. Adams smiled blankly, while the rest of Tina's relatives continued laughing themselves silly.

"I like meeting people," she said simply, soft smile still in place as she examined the soldier.

"Well, this is Steve."

Mrs. Adams sauntered up to Steve and held out her hand for him to shake.

"Hello Steve," she smiled almost flirtatiously.

He couldn't help laughing a little.

"Nice to meet you, ma'am."

"Oh, and he's polite. Oh, Christina, I like him. Is he your boyfriend?"

"Yeah, mom. He is," Tina smiled sweetly up at Steve.

"Is he a football player? My Jeffy is a football player," she smiled lovingly at her husband, "Best receiver on the team!"

"Not for a long time, Deb," he reminded gently. Turning his gaze back to Steve he asked, "What do you do? If it isn't football," he laughed.

"I'm in the, uh, Special Forces." Steve's right eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly, the way it always seemed to when he was lying. Tina caught it and smiled just a little.

"Wow," one of Tina's cousins replied, "Isn't that, like, super scary?"

The girl wound a piece of blonde hair around her finger in a way that was surely meant to seem attractive. Steve couldn't help but notice that it was the same shade as Tina's but somehow not half as pretty.

"It's not exactly a picnic," he hedged.

"We're having a picnic!" Deb announced suddenly, his comment jarring her memory.

She grinned hugely and gestured towards the hall.

"Out back!"

The crowd began filing onto the grassy lawn. Toward the end of the property, Steve could see a dock. The sun sparkled off the lake. Suddenly, he felt something grab his leg. He looked down to see a chubby toddler clinging to him with a huge, mostly toothless grin.

"Hi, little fella," he laughed and impulsively scooped up the brown-haired baby.

He hadn't been around babies too often. Steve got frozen in the ice before his friends had any. The only experience he really had was taking pictures with them after shows. The child's eyes were green, and his nose shaped like Tina's. Steve loved being here with her family. He liked them so far, and liked picking out all of her features from the crowd. The baby pointed to Tina and giggled.

"Wisss!" he squealed.

"Yeah!" Tina gushed, "Chris! That's me. Where's mommy?"

The child looked about for a moment and pointed out a tall brunette woman obediently.

"Where's Carter?"

He laughed and raised both chubby arms.

"Yes, that's you!"

Steve laughed with Carter and snuggled him a little closer.

"Well, they're kind of nutty…but so am I, what could you really have expected?" Tina commented, surveying her family.

"I love your mom," Steve responded, "And your dad seems really nice, too. I was so worried he'd hate me."

"Hate you? Steve, you're a dreamboat, of course he likes you!"

Steve shrugged.

"Okay if I abandon you for a minute?" Tina asked, "I'm going to say hi to all my aunts."

"Sure," Steve responded. "Carter and I will…chill here."  
Tina laughed at Steve's usage of modern lingo and tweaked the toddler's toe.

"Are you two gonna be buddies then?"

"Yeah, we're…um," Steve wracked his brains for just a moment, "We're bros," he responded triumphantly.

Carter laughed in agreement and grabbed Steve's nose. Tina flounced off on the lawn and began chatting with a group of motherly-looking women.

"Heyy, Steve."

Steve jumped at the sudden noise. The same blonde-haired girl was smiling up at him.

"Oh, hi."

"I'm Macy," she grinned, flipping her hair out of the gentle breeze.

"Nice to meet you," Steve smiled nervously.

Something about her set him on edge. For some reason, she reminded him of the girl he had a crush on in second grade. Said girl had curb-stomped him when she found out that a loser like him was interested in her. Steve examined Macy a little closer. She appeared to be the same age, but was much taller than Tina, standing at about five foot eight. Her eyes were a rather dismal shade of grayish blue that reminded Steve of cold metal. Though their hair was the same color, Macy's was pin-straight and only came down to her shoulder, a good foot and a half shorter than his girl's. Tina's skin was almost always colored by a blush, but Macy's was tanned much darker. She looked lean and strong, like an athlete, but was simultaneously a lot curvier than Tina, who was petite in every way. Even her clothing choices showed off their differences; Tina wore a neat skirt and flowy top that made her eyes stand out while her cousin wore a tank top and very short denim shorts.

"So awesome to meet you, too. You are like, the hottest. My cuz is sooo lucky," Macy flashed another bleached-white smile at him.

"Thanks."

Macy took a step closer.

"Are you guys FBO? Like, are you serious?"

"Huh? Um, yeah, I-uh, we're serious."

Steve fought the urge to take a step back. _FBO? Does she mean UFO? Oh, gosh, I have no idea what that means…_

"Aw that's sooo sweet."

She gave a simpering grin and placed her hand on his arm.

"That's like, so awesome. I just gotta know though: is she still on about that whole old-school thing?"

"Um-"

"You know, how she like, doesn't wanna do it until she gets married? Is she still such a prude?"

Steve's eyes widened and he shifted Carter in his arms as an excuse to wriggle out from under her hand. He felt redness in his cheeks. _And I thought Tina was modern…who just talks about…_that_ during a family gathering?_

"Tina is very firm in her beliefs," he hedged, quite unsure of what to say and feeling extremely uncomfortable.

"Wow, that sucks so bad for you," Macy sighed sympathetically. "There's no way _I'd_ ever do that to a guy. Especially not a hottie like you."

She looked him up and down. It was creepy…Steve felt like a piece of meat being surveyed by a hungry wolf.

"Well, I agree with her. I feel the same was as she does about-about…that," Steve replied defensively. He took another step backwards, holding Carter a little like a shield.

"OH HELLO MACY," Tina announced quite loudly from behind her cousin.

The soldier sighed in relief.

"Oh, hey, girl!" Macy smiled and patted her on the head degradingly, like you would a dog. She threw one last smile at Steve and sashayed over to the picnic table.

"Oh God, I hate her," Tina said grumpily, folding her arms.

"Yucky!" Carter added, pointing at Macy.

"Pretty much, buddy," Steve agreed quietly. "If it makes you feel better, she's not half as pretty as you are. Not an eighth as pretty. And she talks…strangely. She's kind of a…"

"Slut? Desperate ho? Queen of harlots?"

"I was going to say 'trollop', but queen of harlots does the job pretty well," Steve chuckled. "Are you jealous?" he teased.

"No!" Tina growled vehemently. She reached up for the baby, who went to her happily, and began promptly tugging on her curls.

Steve put an arm around her waist and kissed the top of her head.

"Now you know how I feel when men look your way."

"Which doesn't happen all too often."

"Oh it does. You just don't notice the heads turning in your direction."

"They do not!"

"They do. I don't lose my mind, though, because I know you love me."

Tina smiled up at her hero.

"I do."

"And I love you."

"Good. But that doesn't make my dumb cousin any less of a bimbo."

Steve laughed and mussed Tina's hair. _Does she know that my world turns around her? Does she realize that the sun rises and sets with her? _She grabbed his hand and led him off to the table for hamburgers and hot dogs.

"It's an all-American meal for an all-American holiday," her father explained.

"Oh, good," Steve replied, "I'm definitely a patriot."

* * *

**So this ended up turning into a much longer scene than I'd originally planned...I ended up splitting it into two parts. Part two will be posted Tuesday, fo sho! Because that'll be the first day in a week that I haven't had swim practice! **

**Review, my lovelies!**


	16. Meet the Boyfriend Part Two

The soapy dishes clinked gently together in the half-full sink, suds splashing over them like a tiny sea.

"What a lovely picnic," Debi sighed as she rubbed a platter dry with a towel.

Tina smiled and handed her a freshly-washed bowl.

"Yeah, it was nice. And we still have the next day, too," Tina reminded her.

Her mother grinned widely and patted her daughter on the back. From behind, the two women looked like they could have been the same person, but for the gray in Debi's hair and the curl of her shoulders.

"Who is that?" Debi asked suddenly, pointing out the window.

Tina peeked over her shoulder and saw a tall, blonde man refereeing group of little boys as they played kickball.

"That's Steve, Mom," she smiled and waved at him through the glass.

Her mom analyzed her look.

"You love him," she stated simply.

Tina was caught a little off-guard.

"Well, yeah-uh. I do. He's my boyfriend, remember?"

"I see it in your eyes. Are you soulmates, Christina?"

"Huh? Mom?"

Debi chuckled softly and tucked one of Tina's curls behind her ears.

"Do you feel it in your heart? When he looks at you, can you feel that he loves you in the core of your soul?"

"Yeah, I-I think so," Tina trailed off and stared harder at the man she loved. Carter was still tucked close to his chest, while Kenny and Chase, the eight year old ringleaders of the young boys in the family stood in conference with Steve. The soldier smiled and tousled their hair. His eyes were magnetically blue, his grin soft and patient. The smaller boys began crowding around. Ricky poked his brother in the belly, but Carter laughed it off, good kid that he was. Kenny suddenly flew off and seized the kickball, presenting it to Steve. With a look of mock concentration, the captain one-handedly punted the thing directly up. It disappeared from sight and the boys cheered. Ricky reached up to high-five him, and Steve responded good-naturedly. His hair shone in the afternoon sun, and his t-shirt showed off his arms. Steve met Tina's eyes through the window again.

Then, she didn't give a rat what he looked like. His gaze held her like a hypnotist's. She could feel his gaze pounding through her heart, in her fingertips, the roots of her hair, her toes. Every fiber of her being felt _alive_. She was warm and joyful. _He loves me. _He smiled and caught the ball without looking away. _I would have fallen in love with him if he was still the scrawny before-serum Steve. He'd still be the man I love. And he'd still be perfect for me in every way._

"Yes. I do, Mom. I do feel that."

…

Steve lazily moved his feet in circles in the cool lake water, watching the ripples ricochet off each other.

"You've really never been fishing before?" Tina's father asked as he leaned against a pole on the dock.

"Nope," Steve replied, shading his eyes from the sun. "I lived my whole life in Brooklyn. My dad died when I was little, and my mom had to work a lot to support us. There really wasn't money to go anywhere."

"Mm," Jeff grunted, readjusting himself. "In my experience, kids that grow up without dads tend to be punks. I was one," he chortled, "But my Deb fixed that up. You seem like a real good guy, Steve."

"Thanks," Steve smiled, "I try."

"Do you?"

"Yessir. Otherwise I'd keep losing ground."

"Losing ground," Jeff cocked an eyebrow up.

"Tina's already so far ahead of me with being good. If I slack off now, I'll never catch up," Steve rationalized.

Her dad huffed a little laugh and checked the fishing line.

"Tina," he said thoughtfully, "She's been Christina, Chrissy, Chris…never Tina though. That what her friends call her at school?"

"No," Steve replied, "Just me. When I met her, I asked what her name was and she stood there thinking," he laughed at the memory.

Jeff giggled.

"I can see her doing something like that…big goof."

"She listed all these things people call her…so I picked one that wasn't on the list. I wanted to have something special to call her."

Her father nodded reflectively.

"I was fully prepared to hate your guts," he stated after a few moments' pause.

Steve grimaced.

"I don't, for the record," Jeff reassured him, "If I could have picked out the exact characteristics of the guy my little girl should be with, I would have ended up with you anyway. I'm happy for you two. And I gotta love a guy who likes the Dodgers."

Steve sighed and smiled hugely at Jeff's grudging form of affection.

"Well, thanks. All my friends are trying to pressure me into rooting for the Yankees, though."

"Hold strong! You don't have to root for the home team. It makes you tough."

_But I _am_ rooting for the home team…of 70 years ago..._Steve thought wryly. Just then, Jeff's fishing pole bent. The two men leaped from their relaxed positions and Jeff began coaching Steve on how to reel in his first catch.

…

Steve followed the curves of Tina's curly hair with his eyes. The moonlight shone through the window of her tiny room, turning her hair silver as it lay spayed across the pillow. Her eyelids fluttered as she dreamed, and not for the first time, Steve wished he could know what she dreamed about. She mumbled softly, and he listened, but as usual her words were unrecognizable. Steve stared out the window at the shining lake and remembered Jeff's laughter as they reeled in the smallest fish known to man and Debi's sweet smile as he inhaled five plates of pasta. _That woman knows how to make some darn good pasta_, he thought with a smile. _And she loves to feed people. _He thought fondly of his new friend Carter, and of the younger boys' looks of astonishment of how far he could punt a kickball (and he didn't even try his hardest). As he listened to Tina's slow breaths, he tried to identify the feeling that was currently gripping him. He felt…_happy?_ _No that wasn't quite right. Safe? Yes, but something more._ Tina giggled in her sleep and wiggled slightly. _Relaxed? Hm. Close…_

"Steve," Tina almost whispered.

"Yeah?"

Tina rolled over and buried her face in Steve's chest. It was a moment before her realized she was still sleeping. He smiled in the dark. _So that's what she dreams about,_ he thought smugly. He wrapped an arm around her waist and held her closer, still thinking. Then it hit him. It was something he hadn't felt in a very long time. A memory faded from decades of nonuse.

_Family. I feel home. I feel…normal._

* * *

**Yes...I'm late. As usual :/ I re-wrote this chapter about three times...I'm not sure why, it was just tough to write for some reason. Anyway, let me know how you like it!**_  
_

**Review for hugs from Steve :D**


	17. Let's Go Fly a Kite

Tina sat sleepily at the kitchen table, trying to decide who was happier to see their food; Steve or Carter. As Steve was 21 years older than the baby, it was entertaining to see the look of delight on his face that bacon could cause. _He's almost 22 years older than Carter. Wow. Can't believe he'll be only 23 tomorrow. He seems so much older than that sometimes…and sometimes so much younger. _Tina was very pleased to have found out about Steve's ironic birthday, the 4th of July. It was actually Tony that found out (albeit accidentally) while snooping through Steve's old records trying to prove a bet with Clint. He mentioned it in a joke, and Tina capitalized on the moment. A surprise party it was, then. She felt a bit confused as to why he didn't want her to know, but she guessed that he didn't want any undue attention. _Or maybe he forgot…how long must it have been since someone celebrated his birthday? He was in the army for years…I can't imagine they'd be throwing balloons and streamers around. I can't wait for him to see what I planned!_

Steve was overjoyed that Debi still remembered him in the morning. _Maybe Jeff reminded her…_The soldier had gotten quite fond of Jeff, liking his straightforward manner and easygoing nature. His morning only got better when he chowed down on pancakes (very nearly as good as Bruce's) and perfectly cooked bacon (Thor would have thought he'd died and gone to Vallhalla…wherever _that_ was). Across the table, Carter cooed with happiness.

"Good stuff, huh, buddy?" Steve commented.

"Yum!" the baby laughed in response.

Carter's three year old brother Ricky scooted up next to Steve.

"Carter loves to eat his foods. He goes nom nom nom nom!" he chirped.

Tina laughed and tousled Ricky's mop of curls as she got up to help put dishes away.

…

Tina and Jeff sat on the dock, under the old weeping willow, attempting to entice fish out of the lake with their poles. Steve could see them talking softly, and made sure he kept his distance so that his enhanced hearing wouldn't pick up their conversation by accident. He wanted them to be able to have their daddy-daughter moment in peace. The wind blew hard, making the trees creak and groan. _But…as long as it's windy…_Steve was struck by a sudden idea. He gathered the littler kids and raided Tina's art supplies.

"Steve! What're we doing? What're we making?" asked Joey excitedly.

"A kite. Ever flown one?"

"No. I've seen them before, though. I have an app on my iPod with kites in it," Joey said knowledgeably.

"Trust me pal," Steve said as he searched the lawn for a straight stick, "This is gonna beat any game you've ever played."

"Can I do it too?" Kenny begged.

Steve squinted up at him through the bright sunlight from where he crouched, tying the sticks together in a T.

"Sure thing."

A sudden gust swept across the wooded property, and Steve heard a loud crack. His head whipped up in time to see a large branch of the willow collapse on the dock where Jeff and Tina were still sitting. As it fell, all Steve could see was Tina's green eyes wide in fear. The branch obscured them both from view. Without another thought, he sprinted across the yard, leaping onto the now-broken dock as the branch was still settling. Jeff came up out of the water, looking surprised but unhurt.

"Tina!" Steve shouted in desperation.

He hurdled over the branch to the other side of the dock and saw golden curls splayed across the wood. Tina was lying on her stomach, hands underneath herself and appeared to be attempting to get up.

"Tina, are you okay?" he asked frantically.

Steve lifted Tina up and cradled her like a baby in his arms, scrutinizing her for signs of injury.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine," she responded shakily. "It grazed my shoulder a little."

Steve examined the wound, which to his relief wasn't deep or very wide.

"You got lucky."

His eyebrows pulled together in concern and in worries not quite yet assuaged.

"I'm fine, Steve," she squirmed, trying to stand on her own, but iron arms held her in place.

"Chrissy?" Jeff asked.

"Yeah, Dad, I'm fine," Tina called, redoubling her efforts to stand.

"You okay, Jeff?" Steve asked.

"It didn't touch me. I just got wet. Ah damn, my dock!" Jeff groaned in frustration.

Steve stood, still holding Tina and leaped from the broken piece of dock to the bank.

"Show-off," Tina muttered, finally giving up and letting the soldier carry her inside.

The young boys stared at Steve with new eyes. Not only could he kick a kickball the farthest and make a kite, but he could save people. Like a real-live hero. Wow.

Steve sat Tina on the counter while her aunt Amy brought a band-aid and some peroxide to clean the scrape with. He stared into her eyes with enough intensity to make Tina feel a bit self-conscious.

"Steve, I'm okay."

"Yeah. I know. It's a tiny little cut."

"Yup."

There was a silence as he gently dabbed the wound with antiseptic, careful not to hurt her. Tina waited for him to say what was on his mind. Pushing him never got her anywhere, so she decided to calmly wait until he wanted to bring up whatever was bothering him.

"I…when you…eh, I don't know," he mumbled.

Tina said nothing, she just searched his blue eyes for clues.

"It scared me. Really, really badly," Steve confessed.

"And you weren't even under the tree," Tina quipped.

"No," he said, frustrated, "You…You make my life good. Heck, you made me have a reason to live in this century." Steve placed the band aid over the cut. "I didn't really have a purpose before that."

"Sure, you did," Tina comforted him, "Everyone looks up to you, Captain. The A…your team…needs you."

Steve barked a harsh laugh.

"Sure," he said acidly, "Captain always has a purpose. Everyone counts on him to be there when the day needs to be saved. Steve Rogers, though, he's a nobody. No one needed him."

"Well I do," Tina argued.

She studied his face, saddened by the bitterness in it. His expression softened as she spoke.

"I know you do," he whispered into her ear, "That's why it would kill me to lose you."

"Your team needs you too. They love Steve, too."

He smiled crookedly and brushed his fingers across her cheek.

"Okay."

Tina kissed the tip of his nose, then hopped down from the counter. She took his hand and led him back outside.

"You know I've never actually met Captain before?" she noted.

"I hope it stays that way. If you do, it'll be because there's serious danger. And I'm not very nice when I'm him. I'm kind of bossy."

"Leader-y is what I heard."

"Deadly."

"Strong."

"Lethal weapon."

"Valiant hero."

"Walking flag."

"Patriot."

Steve stopped and gave Tina a sideways look.

"You always seem to win these arguments," he commented.

"Because I'm good at circular logic. You're good with real logic, which stumps me," Tina sounded slightly boastful of her ability (or lack thereof).

Steve rolled his eyes, but felt better nonetheless.

"No, really," Tina continued, "I wanna see you all suited up."

"Ha. No."

"Please?" Tina begged, batting her eyelashes. She continued in a horrible imitation of a southern accent. "I sure do love me a man in uniform."

Steve gave a genuine laugh then, but mussed her hair instead of answering. She sighed and switched subjects.

"So, are you excited for tomorrow?"

Steve stiffened almost imperceptibly.

"What's tomorrow?" he asked with forced nonchalance.

Tina cackled internally. _Oh, I love watching him try to lie to me. This is entertaining. He can pass a lie-detector test saying whatever fantasy comes to mind, but can't stand keeping little things from me._

"The fourth of July!" she enthused. "It's practically your holiday!"

"Oh, yeah," Steve said, shifting his weight and nervously flattening his hair.

"Should be really fun, huh?" Tina smiled up at him, enjoying his failure at lying more than she'd like to admit.

"Uh, yeah. Sure."

Steve's eyes darted all over as he avoided meeting Tina's stare. Thankfully for the soldier, Kenny and Joey marched up to him with the beginnings of a kite.

"Are we gonna finish this?" Joey asked plaintively,

Steve nodded and set to work. Tina and Kenny decorated it, while Joey and Steve set up the frame. Tina wrote all of their names on it and handed the finished product to Steve.

"Who's first?" he asked with a grin.

The whole mess of kids began jumping up and down frantically yelling 'me!' Steve held a hand behind his back.

"I've got a number behind my back. Whoever guesses closest goes first."

Tina would always remember that afternoon as one of her favorites. The wind kept up speed, and the boys played with the kite the rest of the day. Macy was busy tanning and therefore out of the way, Mom remembered a lot, Dad laughed a ton, and Steve was happy. As Tina climbed into bed next to her favorite man, she was a little sad that the day had ended. But as her mother said, "Don't be sad it's over. Be happy it happened." Tina lie on her side and snuggled against Steve. He threw an arm over her protectively, twitching slightly in his sleep. She tensed and listened. Although his night terrors were becoming less and less frequent, they still happened about once every week or two. He fidgeted again, then let out a sigh of what sounded like happiness. Tina took that as a good sign. She closed her eyes, anticipating the next day. _Steve has one helluva birthday coming to him._

* * *

__**Okay guys, so I'm thinking that the next chapter is gonna be pretty fluffy, but after that it'll get kind of serious for a few chapters. Probably 5-6 more chappies total. **

**Lemme know what you thought! Review please! It makes me happyyyyy :D**


	18. Happy Birthday

When morning came, Tina packed up their bags in a hurry, whirling around the tiny room like a dervish.

"Where's the fire?" Steve asked, laughing.

"Stark Tower. That's where the fireworks are gonna be," she said, evading his question with a grin.

She kissed her mother and father goodbye and had a big group hug with all the little cousins.

"Come back soon," Jeff smiled as he shook Steve's hand.

Debi laughed lightly and gave him a big hug.

"Yes, please do."

"I will," Steve said, winking at Carter and co. "Ricky still needs to have his turn pitching."

The curly-haired child squirmed with enthusiasm, and they all waved goodbye as Steve and Tina pulled away in the shiny silver car.

Tina couldn't help it, she bounced on the seat with uncontained excitement the whole way home.

"Seriously," Steve began, "You're giving me the heebie-jeebies. What's eating ya?"

Tina smiled mysteriously and said nothing, continuing to bounce in time to the music, which, after a fierce rock-paper-scissors tournament (won by Steve), was jazz. She pulled out her phone and checked it. _Everything's ready,_ Pepper had texted her. Tina resisted the urge to squeal with joy, instead leaning over and kissing Steve on the cheek. He shook his head in utter confusion, but couldn't stop a small smile from appearing on his face. Her happiness and enthusiasm were contagious.

…

She ran into the elevator, leaving a befuddled soldier behind as she slammed the 'shut door' button. Suddenly, the cab surged upward with a huge burst of speed, and Tina got squished to the floor. When the doors opened, Pepper handed her a Yankees jersey and a pair of denim shorts.

"Get dressed! Let's go! The game starts in 20 minutes." she instructed.

Tina stood woozily.

"I know I said speed was of the essence, but the elevator did NOT need to go that fast."

Tony fidgeted uncomfortably and Bruce elbowed him in the side.

"Told you that was overkill," Bruce said smugly.

"Sir, Captain Rogers is now in the elevator," JARVIS informed Tony.

"Slow it down!" Tina said frantically, hopping into the shorts behind the bar.

Tony laughed manically as he played with his computer.

"Oh it's slowed down alright."

Tina took one last look in the mirror and adjusted her ponytail.

"Okay, I'm ready. Everyone else good?"

She looked around the room at the rest of the Avengers. Bruce, Clint, and Natasha wore Dodgers jerseys, while Pepper, Tony, Thor, and herself wore Yankees colors. Clint held a vintage Dodgers jersey that Tony had acquired for Steve and a Yankees cap to go with it. _Perfect. Steve's two teams playing each other. On his birthday!_ The elevator doors opened.

"There is something seriously wrong with that elevator," Steve stuttered as he stumbled out.

"SURPRISE!" the Avengers shouted.

Steve stood completely still, eyes wide in shock. Tina grinned.

"Happy 24th birthday, Steve!" Tony called.

Steve laughed and sat on the floor, completely bowled over in surprise.

"What-I…I didn't even…"

"Tell me? Nope. You didn't," Tina said, pulling him up. "But with two master assassins, a god, two geniuses, and Pepper on the case, how did you really expect to keep it a secret?"

Steve hugged Tina.

"And you," he added, "You have a knack for getting into things you shouldn't."

Tina smiled proudly.

"Now put on your jersey," Clint instructed him. "It's time for Thor and my present to you."

"Which is…?" Steve asked as he buttoned the Dodgers gear up and pulled on the Yankees hat.

Thor handed him a glove in answer and Clint whistled "Take Me Out to the Ball Game".

…

The seats Clint and Thor had picked out for the baseball game were really, really good. So good that Tina fervently hoped she wasn't going to get hit in the head, but with so many heroes around, it didn't seem likely. Steve was hilarious. Every time anything happened, he wanted to cheer and boo. He usually just ended up cheering, being the glass-half-full kind of guy he was. If you love both teams, anything is good! The game was close, but the Yankees pulled it out in the end with, as Steve said 'one helluva slugger'. He even caught a foul ball. After they returned home, each Avenger signed the ball, and Tina wrote 'Happy 24th' on it. Steve placed it on top of his dresser, right in the middle.

"That was unreal!" he enthused as everyone gathered in the living room. "Thanks Clint! Thanks Thor! Those seats were ritzy."

Thor looked a bit confused by the jazz-age slang Steve sometimes slipped into, but he understood the point.

"I'm glad you enjoyed the game. I did as well. Perhaps you could teach me how to play sometime?"

"Sure thing!"

"I got a kick out of watching try to root for both teams," Clint chuckled.

Steve grinned and reached out for Tina's arm as she walked past.

"Where you headed off to, doll?"

"Me?" she asked innocently, "Oh, I'm going to go get ready."

She shook off his grip, kissed him on the nose and flounced off with Pepper and Natasha.

"Ready?" Steve asked the guys around him.

Tony chuckled.

"This is Natasha's and my present," he said with a grin.

"Oh boy…" Steve muttered.

"It's about five," Bruce commented, "We probably have another two hours before we need to get ready."

"Can you teach me the sport of baseball in the meanwhile?" Thor asked eagerly.

"Okay," Steve agreed, but he still wondered what on earth he'd be getting ready for.

…

Tina did a little spin in front of the floor-length mirror in Pepper's bathroom.

"Natasha, this is beautiful. Good pick!"

"Yeah she's good," another voice added.

Tina's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Oh, yeah," Pepper smiled, "Surprise! Meet Jane Foster, Thor's leading lady."

A pretty woman with chestnut-brown hair peeked out of the bathroom.

"Nice to meet you, Tina!" she waved. "Thor tells me a lot about you."

"I've heard a lot about you, too," Tina smiled. "How lovely you are…how smart, how wonderful, how kind..."

"Oh, boy," Jane laughed, "I hope I can live up to all that!"

Jane walked into the center of the room, and the shimmery, midnight-blue fabric reflected the light. The floor-length dress was cinched at the waist and cut to show off her curves.

"You look great," Tina complimented her quietly.

Jane smiled and twirled her finger, asking that Tina spin for her.

Tina wore a silky, green, tea-length dress that accented her eyes just right. Cap sleeves plunged into a V-neckline and an empire waist emphasized her small stature. She opted for black pumps with tiny green bows on the toe, and a small black bow adorned her curled hair. Tina spun around and watched the skirt flare out. _This is going to be fun._

"I did so well for you three," Natasha cooed, watching Pepper come out of the closet, with her hair curled as well.

Pepper wore a black dress with a scoop neckline and thick straps. The dress itself was quite simple, except for the corset-esque top. She also wore black pumps, but they weren't as high as Tina's, so the two women stood a bit closer to the same height. Natasha wore a cream dress with black accents. The skirt was free-flowing, but the top was fitted, showing off her figure. A thin, black patent-leather belt was cinched on her waist. Her pumps were cream-colored like the dress. All four women wore simple makeup, save for the red lipstick and black mascara.

"I'm a pretty good dancer," Pepper said as she fussed with her pearl necklace, "The slang is what's going to kill me."

Tina giggled.

"Steve slips into it so often that I think I'll be fine. The dancing is going to be awful though…I can be such a klutz. Especially in heels," she said.

"I'm a klutz all the time," Jane sighed, "Consider yourself lucky."

Natasha rolled her eyes.

"I'm a spy. We're good at getting into character," she laughed.

"Speaking of character," Pepper began, "I hope that everyone in the ballroom holds to it. It'd be really annoying if they all decide to freak out when they see the Avengers."

"No they won't," Natasha reassured her, "Tony and I had…ah…a little talk with them. They already got signed pictures and death threats, so I think it'll be okay."

Tina sighed at the gung-ho assassin and grabbed her girlfriends by the arms.

"Let's go ladies!"

…

Steve raised his eyebrows when he saw the suit Tony had picked out for him. It was a medium gray with pinstripes, and cut in the fashion of the time. But that was the thing. It was cut for the fashion of a time about seventy-five years ago. Sighing, he put on the white shirt with emerald green accents and tied the charcoal-colored tie. Checking his reflection, he felt like he had fallen back into another time. He heard a knock at the door, and as he went to answer it, he found that Tony had already stormed in.

"Don't touch your hair or I'll beat the crap outta you," he threatened, shoving the Captain into a chair.

Tony wore a suit very similar to Steve's but a much lighter shade of gray. Bruce, Clint and Thor filed in as Tony combed Steve's hair to the side, exactly the way he used to wear it. All four men had neatly parted their hair to the side and smoothed it down. Thor had even straightened his long locks. Bruce wore a light shade of brown with his signature purple shirt, and Clint wore an almost-black suit. Thor's was a dark navy with a white shirt under it.

"Are we going into a time machine?" Steve asked sardonically.

"Nope," Bruce answered cheerily, "How do your shoes fit?"

Steve glanced down at his shiny black shoes.

"Fine. Why?"

"Because you're gonna be dancing in 'em," Tony responded.

Steve frowned at Tony, still not entirely sure what was going on. Thor laughed and clapped him on the shoulder, effectively steering him out of the room.

The men waited in the living room for the girls to come down.

"You girls all dolled up yet?" Clint called up the spiral stairs.

"Sure, baby, I'm ready," Natasha responded, flowing down them and taking Clint's arm.

"Wow, Nat," Bruce smiled.

Pepper and Jane walked down the steps together, each taking their man's arm.

"Jane, you look stunning," Thor said softly, smiling at her, and obviously forgetting which 30's words would be appropriate.

"Aw, applesauce," she grinned up at him.

Tony reached out for Pepper's hand.

"Well don't you look like the cat's meow," he grinned rakishly.

"Nice getup, sugardaddy," she winked back.

Steve was starting to put the pieces together, but before he could form a coherent sentence, Tina was standing in front of him, smiling sweetly. Then, the words just wouldn't form. _She was beyond gorgeous…she….gah._

"Well aren't you a handsome fella."

Steve was still past words, his eyes tracing the contours of the dress, each curl, and the shape of her lips.

"T-tina, gee whiz," he muttered in shock. "You look beautiful, you-you, wow."

"Oh, baloney. You don't look half bad yourself," Tina smiled as she took his arm.

"Let's get a wiggle on, we've got somewhere to be."

Steve didn't bother asking, he just let a gorgeous woman guide him down to Tony's ballroom.

But it didn't look like it normally did. Steve stopped dead in the doorway, almost like he didn't dare enter for fear that it would disappear if he did. It was a perfect revival of the old jazz clubs Steve used to know. The people dancing, the music playing, the décor, the lighting. Everything was exactly the way he remembered. He turned and stared at the billionaire and a certain assassin, pointing inside rather than asking if it was their doing. The pair smiled.

"Happy birthday, Steve," Natasha said softly.

"Hot socks," he whispered.

Tina laughed and tugged on his arm impatiently.

"Let's go!"

The group wandered inside and found a table, Steve still grinning and looking around.

"This is swanky," he remarked.

"Isn't it just?" Tina replied, seeing the place for the first time herself.

"No, really, this is the real McCoy. It's exactly the way I remember."

Tina smoothed Steve's tie out.

"That's how I hoped it'd be."

Steve grinned.

"Wanna dance, bunny?"

"Sounds swell."

Steve laughed hearing her use his words.

"You know," he said, leading her out onto the dance floor, "I don't really know that much about dancing."

"Why not? This is _your_ decade, you should know!"

Steve put a hand on her waist, twining his other fingers with hers.

"Nobody wants to dance with someone they could step on," he reminded her of the man he used to be.

"And after you were a hero? Nobody wanted to dance with you then?" she teased.

He shrugged.

"I was waiting."

"For?"

Steve leaned in close and whispered in her ear.

"The right partner."

…

Bruce's present was amazing as well. The fireworks were beautiful. The night was starting to cool off, and the city was glowing. As Steve sat on top of the Stark Tower with his friends and the girl he loved, he thought that he'd never had a better birthday. Everyone went inside, but Tina stayed up with him, staring at the city from this bird's-eye-view.

"Hey, birthday boy."

Steve pulled her closer to his side.

"Mmm?"

Tina handed him a tiny box with a bow on the top. Steve took it, but analyzed her expression.

"Haven't you given me enough today?"

"No, those were everyone else's presents," Tina protested.

"I know they were all your ideas," Steve said.

"Well, yeah. But Pepper organized all of it."

Steve sighed.

"I already got it, so you might as well open it up," Tina said stubbornly.

Rolling his eyes, Steve lifted the lid and tipped the box over into his hand.

In his hand lay a silver dog tag, much like the ones he already wore. Engraved on the back, it said, "Love, your Tina". On the front, where his ID would go were four simple words.

This is my hero.

* * *

**Ahhh this chapter got out-of-control long. But oh well. Next chapter is when things get real...seriously this time. **

**This week I have midterms and my audition for my school's show, so don't expect and update until the weekend. Sorry bout that, but it's gotta be that way :/**

**Review, pretty pretty please!**


	19. Imposter

Tina crossed her arms and tapped her foot on the floor. _Why does the lighting look so _off_ on this canvas?_ She studied the half-finished painting, eyes narrowed. Taking a small step forward, Tina angled one of the white lamps a bit differently, and was much more satisfied with lighting. She almost felt bad that Steve's room had become her art sanctuary, but Tony would freak out if she left so much as a smear on the floor somewhere else. Plus, Steve loved watching her work, so he dealt with her stuff being there. Tina took a few steps backwards and examined each corner of the canvas. _Okay…I think I can live with that,_ she decided. She was broken out of her concentration by the sound of shoes clomping down the hallway.

"Steve?" she called.

In answer, he opened the door and strolled into the room, hands in his pockets, staring up at her. She smiled and pointed at the canvas.

"What do you think of the lighting on this?"

Steve looked briefly at the painting, but almost immediately switched his focus back to Tina.

"It's fine," he said noncommittally.

Tina bit the inside of her lip. _Well SOMEONE is cranky...I wonder if the whole "guys day" Tony planned went badly._

"Okay."

His unrelenting gaze was starting to make Tina feel a bit uncomfortable. She stepped down from the high edge of the room and grabbed his hand.

"Are you okay?"

He smiled a bit.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he responded, taking her other hand in his.

"You seem a little…I don't know…"

Steve tugged on her hands and sat her next to him on the couch. He leaned in close to her.

"I just missed you, that's all," he breathed.

Tina giggled a little drunkenly, the way she tended to when his beautiful face was that close to hers.

"You were only gone a few hours," she reminded him.

"Just the same, I missed you, Christina."

Tina's blood froze. He never called her Christina. Ever, ever, ever. When he felt the need to elongate her name he called her Tina Marie. Never Christina. Her silly nickname was the first inside joke they had, and she knew that he cherished it as much as she did.

Something was wrong.

Steve shook her arm.

"Christina?"

"Oh-oh, yeah I, um, I-I missed you, too," she responded shakily, averting her eyes from his.

Steve leaned in closer and pressed his mouth to hers. He kissed her roughly, pulling on her hair and tugging on her shirt.

For the first time, Steve was no longer the beacon of security for Tina. No longer was he the sheltered haven, the safe harbor, the fearless protector. She was scared of him.

Tina pulled back.

"Hey," she began, frantically trying to stall for some time alone.

"Don't," Steve growled, pulling back to him. "I _want_ you. Right now."

"Oh, I, um, was thinking that, too," she lied, "I was going to go…get ready."

Steve sat back, leering at her.

"Sure," he allowed, "Just don't take too long."

Tina stood and resisted the urge to sprint to the bathroom. Steve goosed her as she left and she fought a scream. She shut and locked the door, then crawled into the linen closet at the far end of the bathroom, hoping that he wouldn't be able to hear her. She pressed the speed dial on her phone for Tony and prayed that he would answer. The dial tone felt like it lasted an eternity.

"Sup."

"Tony," Tina whispered, "Oh thank god. Where are you? I need help, something's wrong."

"Tina? What's going on? Are you in the Tower?" Worry colored the billionaire's usually carefree tone.

"Yes, I'm hiding in my bathroom. It's Steve. There's something…off."

"Steve?" he asked in shock.

"Yeah, he's acting…strange. Kind of threatening. I'm scared, Tony."

"Steve?"

"Yes Tony!" she whispered as loudly as she dared, "Steve."

There was a long pause.

"Tina...it can't be Steve. He's sitting in the car with me."

Tina's heart dropped. _If the real Steve is there…who's outside the door?_ She started hyperventilating.

"Hold on," Tony said.

"Tina? Tina?" Steve's voice sounded panicked.

"Steve? That's not…possible. B-b-but you-you're outside! There's _something_ that looks just like you."

"I know. We're coming, baby. Where are you?"

Tina started shaking. _How long is it going to take before not-Steve realizes I caught on?_

"In the linen closet," she breathed.

She could hear discussion in the background. Tony was filling everyone in.

"Don't panic, sweetie. Does…it…know where you are? Does it know you figured this out?"

Tina bit her lip in an effort to not cry.

"He-it, it was trying to-to, um t-touch me. It wants…_that_ and I told it was going to get ready."

There was an audible snap from the other end as Steve broke something or another. Tina heard muffled cursing and assumed she was on speakerphone.

"Skrull," she heard Thor growl suddenly. "Somehow this foul creature has gotten to Midgard. What could it want?"

"What?" Clint asked.

"A Skrull. They're beings from a realm called Skrullos. They can shapeshift into any form they desire. They can resemble another person, a lamp, a car. Anything," Thor answered gravely.

"Will it have Steve's strength?" Bruce asked softly.

Tina held her breath.

"That's very possible," Thor said tensely.

A tiny sob escaped Tina.

"We're two minutes away, Tina," Steve said with forced calm. "You're going to be okay."

"We're in Tony's party bus so we're all suited up and everything. You get to see suited up Captain!" Clint joked with a feeble attempt to lighten the mood.

"I called Natasha," she heard Tony say to someone, "She's coming, too."

"Good. I want this guy pinned, and I want to know all his dirty little secrets," Steve's 'captain voice' was beginning to come out. "And then I'm going to beat him into the next century."

Tina heard a fist ram into the bathroom door.

"Christina!" not-Steve said angrily, "What are you doing in there?"

The other end of the phone went silent.

"J-just a minute!" she called weakly.

"Tina. You need to distract him. Don't try to fight him. Ask him questions. Tell him you figured him out if you need to. Don't panic. We're coming, okay? I promised I'd keep you safe, remember?"

Tina nodded, although he couldn't see and put the phone down without turning it off. She climbed out of the closet and reached for the doorknob with a shaking hand. The door flew open the moment she unlocked it. The Skrull was contorting Steve's face with anger. _Steve would never look at me like that._

"You don't look very different," he remarked acidly.

"I figured you out," she stated softly, eyes on the floor.

The Skrull sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"What gave me away?" he asked, almost tiredly.

"Tina. Steve calls me Tina."

Not-Steve's eyebrows pulled together in confusion.

"Well it says 'Christina' on your file at SHIELD."

Tina's eyes widened and the thing walked closer to her, until she was pressed against the wall.

"It's a shame you didn't give me what I wanted. You're very pretty, for a human. You'll regret this."

Tina trembled.

"Unlikely," she managed to spit out.

"I'll get you sooner or later," it sneered, "There's more of us than you think," it whispered in her ear.

Tina heard the noise of boots and shouting on the top floor and grinned triumphantly.

"There's about to be one less," she said cockily.

"Oh," laughed the Skrull, "I don't think so."

By the time bedroom door slammed open and Captain America lunged through it, the room was empty. There was silence, a ragged hole in the once-beautiful window, and a ruined painting on the floor.

* * *

**Ahhh! Oh noes! What are Skrulls doing on Earth? And why would they bother with Tina? What do you think Steve's gonna do?**

**By the way, I know very little about Skrulls. Taking a bit of creative license here, don't hate.**

**Review please! Thanks :)**


	20. Gone

Steve stood in shock, staring at the wreckage of his room. He was panting a little from the sprint across the house, but now it felt like fear had punched a hole in his lungs. His chest heaved as he tried to get oxygen. His head was spinning, his hands were cold. It felt just like when he used to have asthma attacks. _Panic! Panic! You can't breathe! You're dying! _But this time there was plenty of air. And his lungs were fine.

Tina was gone.

Gone, gone, gone.

And it was all his fault.

_I should have protected her better. I promised her. I promised she'd be okay. I swore I was going to be her hero and I failed. My fault, all my fault._

Steve's shield fell from his numb hand to the floor with an ear-splitting _clang_. It spun for a few rotations, then settled on the hardwood, silent and still. Fortunately, the noise brought Tony to his senses.

"Fury," he said suddenly. "If there's an alien here for any reason, he'd wanna know about it. He's gonna make this top priority and we'll have all of SHIELD's resources. Widow, Hawkeye, Bruce, get to base, right now. Keep your comms on."

Without a word, the two assassins swept from the room, Bruce running to keep up.

"Steve," Thor said softly, resting a gentle hand on Steve's shoulder. "We must go. Standing here will not aid her."

The god's wise words shook the captain from his state of horrified denial. He grabbed his shield from the ground and spun around to face the remaining two Avengers.

"Wh-what-what do we do?" he stuttered to himself.

Steve took a deep breath and shut his eyes. _Thor's right. If I'm going to save her I've gotta get my act together._ Steve's face hardened into the Captain's emotionless mask, but those who knew him well could see his eyes still reflected his terror.

"He jumped through the window, so they either have airpower, or can fly. We start by scanning the skies. Iron Man, I need you flying perimeters. As fast as your suit can take you. Don't let anything slip through."

Tony slid the face mask shut and dove through the window, sending glass pieces skittering across the wood in his wake.

"Thor, can you carry me? We need to scope out potential hiding places they may have gone to," Captain continued.

The Asgardian nodded and the two men linked arms, back to back, the way they found worked best in this type of situation. Steve's eyes instantly began roving the city for any signs of unusual activity. This wasn't like the Chitauri invasion, where the enemy was easily found. This was a subtle invasion. A quiet coup. In his opinion, an obvious but full-scale takeover would be a lot easier to deal with than this sneaky attack. Seal off the entrance, corral the enemies, unleash the Hulk on a big pile of them, go home for schwarma. This was difficult to spot. And they had a hostage, a hostage more valuable than life itself to Steve. Thor landed on top a skyscraper and held onto the spire. Captain did the same, scanning the horizon.

"Okay," Bruce's voice said in the communications unit in his ear, "We're having all aircraft except SHIELD's land immediately. Anything else is up for grabs."

"Got it," Tony said, "But what if they Skrullify their aircraft? Make it look like one of SHIELD's?"

Steve heard keyboard clicks over the wind.

"Good thought," Bruce admitted, "I just put all of our ships are on constant radar. If you get near 'em, we'll know. And if you're near something we don't recognize, drop it."

"Understood," Thor rumbled.

"We're going to start checking things out," Hawkeye informed them, the sound of rotors loud in the background.

"Does Cap want a lift?" Widow asked.

"Yes. I'm with Thor," he said tersely.

As the helicopter came overhead, Steve quickly scaled the rope that Natasha dropped from the helicopter and strode to the cockpit. Natasha was mapping out gridpoints and Clint was glaring in each direction as though the sky itself had done him a personal ill. He turned around in his seat and met Steve's eyes, but said nothing. Nothing needed to be said.

A small helicopter floated over the river, with the logo of a news station on the side.

"Are they stupid or something?" Clint snarled. "SHIELD heli number one-three-oh requesting communication with CBS news heli, over."

Static was the only response. Natasha pointed out a small stream of smoke coming out of the aircraft and the damaged tail.

"Maybe they hit something and it knocked out their radio. That could also be why they're not moving. The tail's damaged," she suggested.

"Fine, I'm getting them out of here," Steve grumbled.

He stomped to the back and lowered the rope again. "I'll call for pick-up in a minute."

Steve waited until the other helicopter's hanging ladder was low enough to reach. When it was, he clambered up and signaled for Clint to pull away. He turned inside, utterly frustrated.

He did a double take. He was staring at a perfect replica of himself. Just like a mirror. The other Captain wore his uniform and even carried a shield, but was grinning evilly.

"You," Steve growled.

"No," it laughed softly, "I _am_ you."

Steve stepped away from the open door; he had no desire to fall today.

"Where is she?" he asked darkly.

The Skrull laughed. Steve caught movement out of the corner of his eye and saw Tina, blindfolded with her sweater and tied to a bar. Her wrists were bound above her head and her ankles were tied to the metal pole below her. A number of bleeding scratches, probably from the window, decorated her body. Her white tank top covered in tiny blood stains from glass cuts. He could she the angry red marks where she'd been hit. The marks were hand-shaped. The shape of his hand.

Steve saw red. He turned on the pseudo-Captain. He threw his shield, slamming the Skrull in the chest and pushing him toward the still-open door. Steve grabbed the other shield and sprinted to Tina's side. He ripped the blindfold off and tore the duct tape off her wrists and ankles, effectively, if slightly painfully, freeing her.

"Tina."

Steve only got her name out before the Skrull attacked. Using Steve's shield as a sword of sorts, it hit him on the shoulder with the edge, only just missing his neck. Steve grunted in pain as the metal bit into his skin. He lashed out with a side kick and turned, using his momentum to grab the shield out from under his enemy. The Skrull ran towards the other wall and ran up it, flipping over Steve's head and seizing the opportunity to box Steve's ears. His comm unit clattered onto the floor and slid out the open door. _Oh no you don't. You will not be between me and her,_ Steve thought viciously, sliding under his doppelganger and cutting at his ankle with the sharp edge of the shield. The Captain leaped to his feet and jumped, kicking the Skrull in the chest with both feet. The imposter flew through the air, falling out of the open door. Steve breathed a quick sigh of relief.

"Tina," he whispered, reaching out to her.

She flinched away from his touch, emerald eyes wide with terror. She was shivering with fright. It took Steve a moment to understand.

"No, Tina, it's really me," he said softly, touching her hand with one finger.

She bit her bottom lip and a tear slid down her bloodied cheek. Steve couldn't help the hurt that overflowed inside him. _Don't be afraid_. Steve desperately wished that the fear would leave her eyes. He sat and scooted back a few feet.

"It's okay, Tina. I'm not going to hurt you. I promise. I love you."

…

Tina gasped involuntarily as the tape was ripped off her wrists and ankles. She blinked and scanned her surroundings.

"Tina," Steve breathed.

Tina's eyes opened in shock as she saw another Steve behind him. The shield sunk into Steve's flesh. They began fighting viciously, and she didn't know who she wanted to win. She stared, eyes locked on their combat, while all the time, she wanted nothing more than to close her eyes and wait for this awful, awful day to end. One of the Captains was kicked out of the open door, and the other knelt beside her.

"Tina," he whispered.

His hand reached out and Tina recoiled. All she wanted was for Steve to reach out and cuddle her and tell her than everything was okay. But she didn't know if it was Steve. She stared at him in fear, praying that the other man had been the imposter, and not her hero.

"No, Tina, it's really me," he said.

Tina stared intensely at him, searching for _something_ that would make her sure. She shivered, still afraid. Steve's hand dropped and his eyes clouded over with sadness. He looked like he was close to tears himself. The Captain moved a little further away.

"It's okay, Tina. I'm not going to hurt you. I promise. I love you."

_That other thing wouldn't have said that,_ Tina thought. _How do I know? How can I tell? I just want this to be _my _Steve._ She tentatively reached her hand out and Steve held his hand out for it, slowly and deliberately, as if trying to prove he meant no harm. Steve caressed her fingertips softly, eyes never leaving hers.

"Steve?"

"It's me, I promise. I-I know your dad Jeff is a huge Dodgers fan. And Carter is my bro, and Tony and I fight about movie choices all the time. And remember that time when you were so angry at your professor that you cried and Pepper explained PMS and the first time we ever met was in the park because you drew me and you looked so beautiful on my birthday that I didn't know what to-oh!" Steve gasped as he remembered her present to him.

He pulled his dog tags out from under his uniform and showed her the one she'd given him July 4th. _My hero_.

"No alien would know to copy that, huh?" she said with a glazed look.

Steve half-smiled nervously.

"No," he answered, hesitantly reaching out to brush his fingertips across her cheek.

Tina suddenly scrambled forward into Steve's lap, wrapping her arms around him as tight as she could. He held her close and rocked her.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry," he whispered, face buried in her hair.

"You're about to be," the Captain's voice said from behind.

Tina looked up in time to see the alien pull a gun out and take aim.

Steve launched himself backwards, knocking the Skrull's feet out. The shot went high, punching a hole in the helicopter's ceiling. The two men grappled on the floor, fighting viciously but neither being able to get the upper hand. They were perfectly matched. For every monster punch Steve would give, he'd get one. For each slash or cut delivered, one appeared. The battle of attrition was going to be won by heart. _You are gonna pay for hurting my girl,_ Steve thought venomously.

The Skrull, unlike the Captain, decided to play dirty. Taking advantage of Tina's position between himself and the door, he threw a rifle at her. The maneuver earned him a kick in the head, but with satisfaction, he watched the irritating human girl's eyes fill with terror as the momentum made her topple out the door and toward the river below. His orders were to distract the Captain. _Use her,_ he was told, _She'll keep him out of the fight for a lot longer. Without leadership, the pitiful heroes of Earth will crumble. _Mission accomplished.

Steve saw the gun fly, but wasn't able to stop it. The huge machine gun hit Tina in the chest, and almost in slow motion, he watched her eyes catch his. There was silence as she fell from view, and then he heard her scream. Steve kicked the Skrull in the head. He let out a roar-like noise of rage then grabbed the sides of its head again, twisting it and breaking its neck. Under his hands, the Skrull began to change as it died. Bursting free of the uniform, its body morphed into a lizard-esqu form, green scales erupting through the material. Steve didn't bother watching for the rest. He leaped for the door, diving into the river below and praying he wasn't too late.

* * *

**Ah! 200 reviews! Thank you all so much for your feedback :) All you reviewers inspire me to keep writing! You are lovely people!**

**And how are the action scenes? They always take me forever to write...**

**Review!**


	21. Heartbeat

Tony was flying perimeters so quickly he almost felt dizzy. _Show your ugly faces, alien scum,_ he thought viciously. He watched Steve climb into a broken news helicopter and rolled his eyes. _That's Steve alright. Protect and serve till the end._

"Barton, what else can you give me?"

"Nothing," the frustrated agent said, "Abso-friggin-lutely nothing. They're still hiding."

"Dammit," Tony cussed under his breath.

He landed on top of a flat building, scanning the horizon still.

"Any word on Lady Tina?" Thor's bass tones echoed into the comm. link.

"Not yet," Natasha said tersely.

She sounded almost…upset? _Wow,_ Tony thought,_ if I were one of these Skrulls, I'd get my alien ass OFF this planet, pronto. They just screwed with someone Black Widow cares about. That's really friggin dangerous. Last guy that did that got smashed into my floor…_

"DAMMIT!" he heard Natasha scream suddenly.

The sound of grinding rotors was heard as the helicopter accelerated violently.

"Whatwhatwhat?" Tony yelled.

"Situation report asap, Widow," Bruce instructed.

"Jesus! Steve just got chucked out the door…he, no it's okay. He grabbed the ladder. He's climbing…he's back inside. Christ, what the hell was that?!"

For once, the calm façade of the Black Widow was shattered as she saw her captain's life in danger.

"He did _not_ fall," Hawkeye stated, maneuvering the helicopter closer, "Someone pushed him. Threw him, looks like."

"Who would…oh yeah," Bruce thought out loud, "More aliens. Great."

"I'm gonna blow the whole thing," Clint said, aiming a small missile at the news heli.

"No! The real Steve is in there too," Thor cautioned him.

"I'll go in for backup," Tony said, flying towards the helicopter.

But then he was stopped. He was momentarily blinded by a flash of red cape, and an enormous bolt of lightning.

"It's fun to be a god," the figure said, "I could get used to this."

"Hey Thor," Tony said casually into the comm. link, "Wanna meet your evil twin?"

There was no response, only another crack of lightning as Thor began to fight his doppelganger. Tony joined the fray, trying desperately to keep the warring pair away from civilians, unsure of which Thunder God to help.

"Thanks for the help, buddy," Clint muttered caustically as he watched the trio of heroes begin fighting.

Natasha strode forward from the back of the aircraft. She turned the pilot's chair and sat on Clint's lap.

"Oh Clint, I'm scared," she simpered.

Clint didn't hesitate for a second. He leaned forward as if to kiss her, but pulled his gun out and shot her in the head point-blank. The copy of Natasha fell back and began changing into a huge, green, lizard-like creature.

"NAT!"

"What, Barton?" Natasha said angrily from the artillery closet, "I said I was going to go in for backup, someone needs to help Steve, I-oh, God what is that?!"

Hawkeye nudged it with a toe, pushing it a little further away.

"This, dear, is a Skrull. It looked like you until about thirty seconds ago."

Natasha studied the thing for a moment before gathering her composure again.

"Ew. Well, good shot. We need to help Steve. If he's fighting himself, there's no telling who could win."

Hawkeye nodded, resuming his seat in the pilot's chair as Black Widow strapped the last weapon onto herself.

"Get closer," she instructed.

Clint pushed the aircraft closer, studying the small news heli below. A small figure appeared in the precarious open door way.

"Is that…?" Hawkeye breathed.

Suddenly, the person was thrown through the door, much like the pseudo-Captain before her. Sadly, she didn't have the good fortune to grab the ladder.

"NO!" Black Widow shouted.

Hawkeye was already on the line with SHIELD.

"Medical team on the ready, there's a girl, she's gonna be beat up and near drowning. Come now. No, NOW!"

Natasha watched in frozen horror as Steve dove out the door after Tina. Clint dropped the helicopter quickly, trying to get low, close to the river. The horrible noise of grating metal greeted them instead.

"What the-" Clint jerked the aircraft to the side.

They had been blocked from below by another helicopter. It rose to their level. Inside was a grinning Hawkeye with a smiling Black Widow behind his shoulder. The real Black Widow smiled back as she fired the missile at them.

…

The water rushed up to hit Steve like a brick wall. He took in a deep breath and dove, searching under the murky water. _Please, please, please, please,_ he silently prayed. Steve came up for air briefly, sucking the oxygen into his starving lungs. Diving under the water, he could hear his heartbeat, loud as a parade's drumline. He strained his eyes against the polluted waters. Left, right, left, right, up, down, left. _Please, please, please._ Suddenly, he caught a glint of something shiny. A golden curl. He kicked his legs and seized Tina, pushing them both up to the surface. He gasped for air again, but was sure to hold her head above water.

She didn't move. Didn't take a breath.

Silence.

Steve refused to believe that. He started swimming for shore, holding Tina lifeguard-style above the waves, desperation fueling his hurt and weary limbs.

Even Dr. Erskine would have been amazed at the infinitesimal amount of time it took him to reach the bank.

"Tina! Tina! Wake up!" he shouted in panic.

Staring at her pale skin and hair plastered to her still face, it took a moment for his training to kick in. He put a hand by her mouth. No breathing. His palm pressed on her chest.

No heartbeat.

Steve immediately began performing CPR, tears flowing freely from his eyes. _Please breathe. Please, Tina. I need you. You promised you'd stay with me. Don't break your promise even though I broke mine. We both always knew you were the better one. Please, please, Tina. Please._

"Steve," Iron Man said, landing next to him, "Let me, or rather JARVIS. It'll function like an AED. Safer, much more reliable. Better chance of reviving her."

Steve completed another cycle before very reluctantly relinquishing Tina to Tony. JARVIS started delivered an electric shock to her heart. Silence. It began running a heart monitor while it delivered oxygen to her body.

"Tina," Steve begged, cradling her lifeless form, "Please Tina. Please come back."

He tried to speak between sobs.

"I'm so sorry, Tina. I should've-I-I…I'm sorry. I wanted this story to end differently. Happily ever after, like in the fairy tales you love. You would be the princess. I'd try to be the most charming prince there is. Stark Tower isn't a castle, but we could pretend. I'd even get you a tiara, if you wanted one."

Steve's voice cracked at the end, but he kept speaking, rocking her gently.

"Hell, I'd go get you the stars if you wanted them. I'd pin them in your hair and everyone else would see how lovely you really are. I know though, I-I've always thought you were the most beautiful girl in the world. So please, please come back, Tina. Come back to me."

The heart monitor JARVIS was running continued to emit a long, monotone beep.

No heartbeat.

Tony hesitated, unsure of whether or not to turn off the AED. It clearly wasn't doing anything. A tear dripped off his nose, both at losing the tiny girl who unknowingly wormed her way into the hearts of Earth's mightiest heroes, and at the immense pain of his best friend.

"Please Tina," Steve begged, salty tears still streaming down his cheeks, "I love you."

Softly, so softly, he touched his lips to hers.

BEEP.

BEEP. BEEP.

"Heartbeat detected, sir."

* * *

**Phew! Sorry to leave you ladies and gentlemen on a cliffie so many times in a row! **

**How did you like it? Any feels? I gotta know these things :)**

**I know this is a fairly short chapter, but I figured this was a good spot to cut it off. I thought maybe you'd like to see two littler chapters faster than one huge one. **

**Review everyone!**


	22. Eyes Open

Tina slowly blinked her eyes open. _Where am I? What happened? _Her mind was moving drowsily, sluggishly. She stared up at the white ceiling tiles and waited for her brain to start going a bit faster. _White ceiling, white floors…what is that beeping? Am I in a hospital?_ She closed her eyes again for a moment, remembering. _Oh yeah. Hm. Well, I'm not dead. Isn't that nice? I thought for sure I was dead…_Tina looked up at the ceiling again, attempting to lift her right hand. It was yanked back into place by an IV drip in her wrist. _Oops._ She wiggled the fingers of her left hand. _Oh, silky. What is that? Is that…hair? _Tina ran her fingers through it again, then heard a gasp as Steve sat up, startled from his sleep by her touch.

"Good morning sleepyhead," she croaked in greeting.

"Tina," his shock at being woken instantly gave way to joy, "Tina, I'm so glad you're awake."

Steve cradled her tiny hand in his, pressing her palm to his heart. He smiled, but fatigue was obvious in the huge purple-black circles under his eyes, which were bloodshot and red. He was still in his uniform, still bloody, and clearly hadn't been asleep for long. Even his always-perfect hair was standing up in the back. Steve brushed his fingers across her cheek. Tina smiled absently in an attempt to comfort the soldier.

"I'm so sorry Tina," he mumbled, searching her eyes for forgiveness.

"Steve, don't. It wasn't your fault. In fact, I'd like to say thanks for rescuing me."

"They would never have come after you if not for me."

"Can we not?" Tina sighed, closing her eyes, "I'm still kinda tired."

Steve cast his eyes to the floor, feeling instantly guilty.

"Come snuggle with me, soldier boy," Tina instructed him, winking.

Steve rolled his eyes.

"Were your eyes hurt, too? I am not going to fit on that tiny little bed. Even without you it'd be a squeeze."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, big boy. I'll scoot over-oh!"

Steve's hands immediately flew out to steady her shoulders.

"Don't move. You have four broken ribs, and your right ankle is shattered."

"Hm. Duly noted," Tina said dryly, still grimacing with pain.

"You're lucky," Steve said, "The helicopter was lowering the whole time we were fighting…If it hadn't been you'd be in even worse shape. And you had the good sense to try to go into the water feet-first, so that helped you, too. You landed slightly on an angle, but that's better than landing on your head."

Tina blushed and Steve understood correctly, laughing a little.

"Correction: you had the astoundingly good fortune to not land on your head."

"Ahem. I still want to be snuggled. If you won't do it, I'll ask Natasha. I'm certain she'd fit up here," Tina said teasingly.

Steve's mouth curved up into a little half smile and he pulled the railing of the bed down, sliding the cot next to hers over to make a double.

"You brat, you," he chastised her.

His comment was completely offset by the tone of affection, and the smile he gave her. Steve climbed up next to Tina, ever so gently laying his arm around her shoulders. She sighed and closed her eyes again.

"Thank you for staying with me," she mumbled.

"Of course. Always."

"You know, I got a little nervous there, after I fell."

Steve's body tensed and Tina heard his heart speed up, although the danger was long over.

"I knew you'd save me, but I was starting to get a little worried. I'm pretty happy to be alive. I would have hated to die after already paying for next semester," she smiled and tilted her head to kiss his neck.

"Tina, stop," Steve's eyes were squeezed shut and his voice sounded strained.

"Stop what?"

"Don't joke about it. Please don't. I-I, I just-can't."

"Can't what? Steve?"

"I thought you were dead. You don't..."

"Steve, it's over. I'm fine," Tina tried to comfort him.

"You don't know what that felt like," he spat, "I thought you were dead and it was all my fault…"

"Steve, it wouldn't-"

"I promised I was going to keep you safe. I failed."

Tina felt a hot tear drop onto her forehead.

"Once, I made a New Years resolution to be less shy. I failed at that too, but it ended up okay. You said you immediately liked me for my shyness. All's well that ends well, right?" she said softly, still trying to lighten the tension.

Steve made a noise of indignation.

"Would you call this," he gestured to the cast on her ankle and broken ribs, "'ending well'?"

"I'm going to get Nat in here to beat you into next week," Tina threatened quietly, "if you don't knock it off with this train of thought."

"I'm sorry…It's just…I'm used to stress. I've been scared before and I've seen teammates go down before. I mean, teammates closer to me than brothers, but I've never been as terrified as I was a few days ago."

"Days?"

"Yes. Two."

Tina nodded slightly.

"Have you been here the whole time?"

"Yes, of course," he said, sounding slightly offended.

_Of course he stayed…wonderful, idiotic gentleman._

"Steve, you need to go get all your wounds cleaned up…and some sleep. And food," Tina tried to sound strict, but was feeling strangely comforted by the fact that her tired soldier had been guarding her nonetheless.

"I'm okay."

His tone let her know that he wasn't about to be persuaded otherwise, so Tina sighed and changed the subject.

"Is it feasible that I fell off a ladder while I was trying to paint something?"

Steve considered the situation in his head.

"Yeah, I guess…I don't like lying."

"Okay, we'll just tell my dad that I got kidnapped by an alien then," Tina snapped.

The Captain bit his lip.

"Steve, you're a soldier, you know how this works. Classified info, right?"

"That doesn't mean I like it."

"Mmm."

Tina's breathing began to slow as she started falling asleep.

"I thought I was going to lose you," Steve whispered into her hair.

"Nah."

"Good, because I still need you. I love you."

"I love you too, Steve."

"I don't want to be alone again."

"Then don't leave."

Steve laughed softly.

"Believe me, I won't."

…

Natasha sat ramrod-straight outside the hospital room in the uncomfortable chair, listening as Clint tapped his foot incessantly. Tony leaned against the wall, staring at the floor. Thor paced back and forth, occasionally throwing glances at Tina's door. The silence was staggering, save for the rhythmic tapping of one shoe. The fight was over, the battle was won. Everyone was cleaned up and fed and had shelved their weapons. But the tension hadn't reached an end yet. The team was still wondering about the fate of a single civilian.

"I'm very sorry, it's just-"

"No! NO!"

Natasha sprang from her chair as she heard Steve's voice raised in anger, mixed with other voices she didn't recognize.

"It's protocol, you can't-"

"The hell I can't!"

"We're sorry sir, but you-"

"NO! I am staying right here! You have no authority to-"

"You're not family, it's against regulation, we-"

"To hell with regulation, I'm not leaving!"

The Black Widow opened the door, glaring at the scene.

"What is going on?" she said in clipped tones.

"Th-there's only family members allowed. Visiting hours are o-over," a waifish doctor stuttered under her fierce stare.

Captain was red with fury, clenching and unclenching his fists as he stood beside Tina's bed.

"It's just the rules. I don't have authority to do anything about it," another man tried to pacify her.

"Let me see your SHIELD clearance card," Natasha demanded.

"You don't have any right to command-"

She reached over and snapped it off his lanyard. Giving it a brief scan, she gave the doctor a terrifyingly calm smile.

"Well, that clears everything up. We just learned that you are ranked far under Captain America, as it turns out. Since we _must_ follow the rules, we're only left with one option," she said in a patronizingly sugared tone, "You obey him. And I believe he's made his wishes very clear."

The white-coated men glanced around at each other. Natasha's false smile widened. The effect was petrifying. They hesitated for a moment longer, and her smile disappeared, instantly replaced with her most fearsome glare.

"Leave. NOW."

Without another moment's passing, her instructions were followed. Steve nodded his thanks and sat heavily back in the chair beside Tina's bed. The door shut.

"Are you okay?"

Steve nodded tiredly, and Natasha marveled at the transition of the fearsome, courageous Captain to hurt, scared Steve.

"She's supposed to wake up within the next few hours," he said, not taking his eyes off her face.

"That's good. We'll all feel better when she wakes up for the first time. Team's all outside, when she's up for visitors."

"I didn't know you were still here," Steve remarked, wincing as he moved his wounded shoulder.

Natasha smirked a little.

"We've been in and out, but at this point, we've waited almost two days. What's another few hours?"

Steve smiled halfheartedly, caressing Tina's hand in his own.

"Thanks, Nat."

The assassin put a hand on Steve's uninjured shoulder for just a moment, then left. The Captain lay his head down on the bed, unable to hold it up any longer. _I won't leave you, Tina._

* * *

**"It's so fluffy I'm gonna die!" Sums up the chapter fairly well, I thought...I sincerely hope the fluff didn't kill anyone though...**

**So, I'm feeling about two or three more chapters til the end. Any final requests?**

**Review! Or Natasha will come at you, glare a-blazin'!**


	23. They See Me Rollin'

Tina groaned and put her head in her hands.

"This is so humiliating!" she moaned.

She more felt than heard Thor's low, rumbling laugh.

"How else are you to visit Tony?" he asked, pressing the elevator button.

Tina crossed her arms, feeling quite resentful of the fact that she needed to be carried like a child.

"How come he couldn't have brought the wheelchair up to me?"

Thor shrugged.

"Perhaps you could ask him that."

Tina sighed and leaned back into Thor, drumming her fingers on her arms and kicking her cast ankle while the elevator music (AC-DC, on Wednesdays) played.

"Wait…are you holding my weight in one arm?"

Thor looked down briefly and gave Tina a bemused look.

"That's ridiculous," she protested, "You people are all ridiculously strong. It's giving me a complex. No one should be able to support a fully-grown person in one arm and not be even a little bit inconvenienced."

"I am an Asgardian, if it makes you feel better," Thor offered, "We're naturally hardier than humans, and I've been trained my whole life as a warrior. It only makes sense that I should be strong."

Tina rolled her eyes as Thor opened the door to Tony's lab.

"There she is! Wanna see your new and improved wheelchair?" Tony asked excitedly.

"I'd like to know why this waited until Steve wasn't with me and how come Bruce wasn't allowed to supervise," Tina said.

Tony's expression suddenly turned a little shifty.

"Pshhh, no reason. Don't be so paranoid. I didn't want to bother Bruce with boring mechanical stuff, and its just a coincidence. Steve happened to be getting stitches at the same time that I happened to finish working on this."

Thor set Tina gently on the counter.

"Okay," she asked hesitantly, "What'd you do to it?"

Tony clapped his hands together in excitement.

"It's so much better than that crappy thing SHIELD was trying to pass off on you First thing I did fixed was one of the wheels: it was totally out of alignment. I changed the seat cushions to memory foam so they're more comfortable. I also added a little motor if you don't feel like wheeling it, and a bunch of pockets on the side that you can hold stuff in."

Tina nodded, surprised by the reasonableness of Tony's creation.

"Wow, thanks Tony. I was half expecting spinning rims and rocket boosters," she laughed.

Tony grinned brightly, pressing a button on a remote, and voila, the rims began to spin, glowing neon green as they did so.

"Of course. What a shock," Tina said sarcastically.

"No Stark product is complete without style," Tony said airily.

Tina rolled her eyes and Thor helped scoot her from the table to the chair.

"Thanks, Tony."

Tony nodded, happy with his contribution. Tina began slowly rolling towards the elevator door.

"Keep it under a hundred, kay granny?" the billionaire laughed as she inched forward.

"Can it, punk!" she yelled without looking back.

Tony chuckled again. _Well, she's back to normal. Hiding from strangers and sassing the pants off everyone else…_

…

Bruce was trying very hard not to show his excitement at the prospect of giving Steve a medical examination. All his years of effort were pushed in one direction: creating more people like Steve. He was trying to make a better world and instead…_I'd never have gotten a family like I have now if it didn't end that disastrously,_ he reminded himself. _A family that loves and trusts me, doesn't flinch when I come into the room. A home, albeit one filled with freaks. Freaks like me. _Bruce began humming the Star Wars theme and cleaned the stincture kit. He'd thought it would be rude to ask Steve for DNA samples, but now…_maybe I shouldn't get ahead of myself. It's just stitches. _

Right on time, the soldier in question shuffled into Bruce's tiny medical office, looking for all the world like he was doing the walk of shame.

"Hi," he said meekly.

Bruce patted the cot for Steve to sit.

"You don't have to be embarrassed for not being completely invulnerable," the doctor said dryly.

Steve sighed.

"I've seen enough doctor's offices to last me a lifetime. And I thought this'd just go away…"

Bruce nodded.

"Well, let's see it then."

Steve shrugged out of his t-shirt and Bruce let a breath hiss through his teeth.

"You thought _that_ was going to just 'go away'?" he asked in astonishment.

The soldier flushed.

"I didn't wanna draw attention to myself," he muttered.

"Jesus, Steve," Bruce shook his head in disbelief, "Next time, just tell me in private if it really means that much to you."

Steve nodded ashamedly. Bruce studied the wound.

The shield had left a straight gash in Steve's right shoulder, cutting from collarbone almost to his shoulder blade. _Lucky he didn't get his neck chopped in half,_ Bruce thought wryly. He gently touched the aggravated skin, checking to see how deep the injury went. The soldier's body tensed, but he said nothing. _Gotta be such a stoic all the time, huh, Rogers?_

"Steve you know you're lucky this didn't chop your muscle off, right?"

"I figured…it hurts to move my arm," he admitted grudgingly.

"No duh…"

Bruce ran some peroxide over the cut to clean it and started getting out the stincture kit.

"Does any kind of tranquilizer work on you?" he asked.

"No," Steve responded, "No painkillers, no alcohol, no nothing."

The doctor paused.

"It's okay doc, just go," Steve reassured him, "I've had worse."

Bruce nodded and reluctantly began threading stitches though Steve's skin. The Captain's hands tightened on the edge of the cot and his body stiffened.

"Hey, Bruce, did you-?"

Both men looked up as Tina's voice sounded from the open doorway.

"Hi," Steve said nervously, as if he'd been caught doing something shameful.

"This may be a good thing," Bruce noted, "Cap, wanna hold her hand? Just don't squish it."

"I'm okay," Steve said quickly, eyes darting all over.

Tina rolled further into the room.

"My god! Steve! That's what you were hiding?" her eyes bugged as she caught sight of the wound, "Jeez, Steve! I thought you had a little cut!"

Steve took a breath to say something, but an Tina plowed on, still furious.

"Isn't that what you said to me? 'It's a little cut, Tina. You worry too much, Tina.' Aghh! You are impossible!"

"I thought-"

Bruce smiled wickedly.

"You'll love this, Tina," he said conspiratorially, "He said to me just now that, get this, he thought it would just _go away_."

Tina's eyes narrowed at her boyfriend.

"Can it wait?" Steve asked before she could continue her barrage, "Let's just get this done."

Bruce nodded and began placing another stitch. Steve's hands crunched into tight fists and he squeezed his eyes shut. Tina's expression immediately softened. She reached forward and pulled his hand into her lap. Steve's fingers stiffly unwound and intertwined with hers, holding on tightly, but it was still obvious how much care he put into being gentle.

"Halfway done, Cap," Bruce said softly.

"Kay," he responded, voice sounding strained.

Tina bit her lip, feeling helpless. She kissed his fingers.

"Almost finished baby," she murmured softly, knowing he could hear.

Steve grimaced in pain while the last stitch was tied off.

"Thanks Bruce," he smiled and offered the doctor a left-handed handshake.

"Sure, Steve," Bruce nodded. "Don't move your arm the rest of the day…then it'll probably be healed by tomorrow."

Steve stood and stared at his shirt on the cot. Tina giggled and helped him into it. Steve blushed, not liking the dependence.

"Did Tony do something to your wheelchair?" he noticed as he pushed her into the living room.

"Yeah, he fixed the wheel and added a motor."

"And? Aaaand?" Tony prompted her.

"Oh, yeah," Tina pushed a button on the arm, and the rims began to spin and glow.

"That's the tackiest thing I've ever seen," Natasha said acidly over the latest edition of Guns & Ammo.

"Beyond tacky," Clint added, from where he was reading over her shoulder.

Steve sighed.

"It could be worse," he noted, averting his eyes from the garish light display. "There could be rockets."

"Why do you all think I would put rockets in a wheelchair? That's an awful idea!" Tony said angrily.

Pepper smiled serenely.

"JARVIS, can you detail the function of everything Tony did to Tina's chair?" she asked sweetly.

"Left frontal wheel realigned, memory foam cushions added, neon lights added, spinning rims added, pockets sewn onto sides, miniature motor and steering system integrated, jet repulsor system added, speaker system added. That's all, Miss Potts."

"Jet."

"Repulsor."

"System."

Tina and Steve took turns speaking while they stared down an unabashed genius.

"You said rockets. I put in repulsors. They're very different," he said snippily.

"I've always said I could beat you up with one arm, and you're making me want to try," Steve said with mock bravado.

Tina giggled. _Life is back to normal,_ she thought happily.

* * *

**Aww errythin's all good again :) Next chapter will be the last one :/ I'm gonna miss this story!**

**Soo, a wee lil announcement: I AM going to do a sequel! Look for it soon, hopefully the same day as the last chapter.**

**Review :)**


	24. A Question

Steve gulped nervously as he took a few steps forward.

"You're good, Cap. Proceed with the mission," Tony's voice said in his ear.

"I don't know if I can do this," the soldier breathed as he approached the entrance.

"You can," Clint reassured.

"We all believe in you," Bruce piped up.

"Stop girling around and get in there, Rogers," Natasha growled.

"Be brave, Captain Steve!" Thor enthused.

Steve winced at the last comment, which was shouted just a bit too loud for the comm. link. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Okay. I'm going in."

"Relax, Steve," Pepper added, "You're asking to marry her, not getting shot at by supervillians."

"I'd almost rather the second," Steve grimaced and put the link in his pocket as he entered the house to speak with Jeff.

"Hey, Steve!" he was greeted with a warm hug. "Where's Chrissy?"

"She's uh, not here," Steve said slowly.

Jeff's eyebrows lifted and he deduced Steve's business rather quickly.

"Hm. Okay. Come in. Amy! Amy, c'mere."

The two men sat awkwardly in the living room. For once, their usual easy banter was gone, replaced by a tense silence.

"How's Debi?"

Jeff shrugged.

"Okay. She's sleeping…she was a lot better yesterday."

Steve nodded and played with his shirt. Tina's Aunt Amy finally stopped bustling around in the kitchen behind them and entered the room.

"Hey, Steve, how are you?"

"I'm great," he smiled weakly.

"Good," she grinned, oblivious to the tension.

"What I really wanted to-to um, come here, to talk to you about, was I-I, uh," Steve stammered and rubbed his sweaty palms against his jeans. He took a deep breath and met Jeff's eyes. "I wanted to ask you for Tina's hand in marriage."

Amy squealed and clapped her hands, and Jeff smiled a little bit.

"This is a day that every father dreads. You never want to give your baby girl away," he said, holding Steve's intense gaze, "But if I had gotten a chance to create the exact man Chrissy should be with, it'd still be you. I'll be happy to give her away to someone who will take care of her like I would."

Steve grinned happily, glad that the tension was gone.

"But you better be good to her," Jeff warned, "We know people. So watch it or-"

"Oh, shut up, Jeff you don't know anybody," Amy laughed and hugged Steve.

Jeff's bravado deflated like a balloon as his sister shut him down.

"When are you going to ask her?" Amy asked.

"Tonight," Steve responded. "Cross your fingers."

Jeff chuckled and slapped him on his shoulder, which, a few months later, had healed from its encounter with his shield.

"Go get 'em!"

…

Tina spent most of the day avoiding Pepper, who seemed to be undergoing some form of psychotic episode, constantly bouncing and laughing at nothing, then switching straight to tears.

"What is her deal?" she had asked Natasha out of the corner of her mouth.

"She spends hours with Tony. Alone. Lord knows what that does to your brain…" Natasha had remarked. Tina had shrugged and gone back to sketching.

When Steve finally got home from his SHIELD physical, he announced that it was date night, and goddang it I need to get out of this house, and please Tina come with me I need to get away from Tony for a minute. Tina laughed and agreed.

"Wear this!" Pepper begged, thrusting a sage green high-low dress at her.

Tina pulled the dress on obediently, then stepped into her favorite summer sandals.

"This is really pretty, Pep, thanks," she smiled at the smug redhead, "What's it for?"

Pepper laughed, sounding a little hysterical.

"Doesn't it just scream 'Tina'? I just had to get it for you…and I figured as long as you were going out, you might as well wear it."

Tina nodded her thanks, and meandered out into the living room.

"Ready?" she asked.

Steve stood up abruptly from what had been an intense looking discussion with Tony, Clint, Bruce, and Thor. He was wearing a white, short-sleeved collared shirt that hugged his muscular form just right. Tina smiled to herself. _Take that Macy, and all the girls who were mean to me in high school. This is MY boyfriend. I win. _

"You look gorgeous," he said softly.

"Thanks, Cap," she said with a wink.

Steve rolled his eyes and took Tina's hand, leading her out of the Tower.

…

"Dinner was awesome," Tina sighed as they started walking home, "Where'd you even hear of that place?"

Steve blushed.

"Pepper. I don't know anything about restaurants nowadays…she helps me pick."

"Well by all means, let her keep picking, that was amazing."

"Yeah it was. Those little breads with the tomatoes on them…"

"Bruschetta," Tina corrected.

"And the pudding stuff…"

"Crème brulee."

"Whatever," Steve chuckled, "It was delicious and that's all I know."

Steve turned a corner.

"Wrong way, smarty pants," Tina said, laughing.

"Nope, I know where I'm going."

Tina allowed Steve to pull her along until they ended up in a tiny park overlooking the Hudson.

"This is where we first met," Steve explained.

Tina smiled, then Steve grabbed her hand and started pulling her down the path.

"Wh-what? Steve!" Tina stammered in confusion.

Steve grinned, but refused to elaborate, dragging her to the little coffee shop.

"Here is where we had our first date."

The stairs up to her college.

"Where you first held my hand."

The entrance of her old dorm.

"This is the place we first kissed."

The oak tree in Central Park.

"Where you first told me you loved me."

Steve finally stopped in a beautiful little garden, surrounded by rustic brick walls. It was empty, save for the flowers and shafts of moonlight. Tina could hear a fountain and smelled the perfume of roses…_maybe orange blossoms, too. And lilac, definitely lilac,_ Tina tried to guess all the different types of flowers by smell.

"And what's this?" she asked, certain that she'd have remembered a place as lovely as this one; "I don't remember this place."

"You will," Steve said with a sweet smile.

He dropped to one knee and took Tina's hands in his. Her eyes widened.

"Tina, ever since I met you, you've given me purpose, hope, and more love than I ever thought I could deserve. You make me so happy. You've made me feel whole, for the first time. When I'm with you, it doesn't matter where we are; I'm home. I'm asking you to let me be your home, too. Tina Marie Adams, will you marry me?"

Tina gasped and nodded her yes, tears streaming down her face.

"Yes, yes, I will," she promised, dropping to his level and wrapping her arms around the man she loved.

Steve laughed and hugged her back.

"You didn't even see the ring yet and you're gonna say yes?" he joked.

Tina giggled and kissed him. It was both soft and passionate, full of love, joy, and promises of things yet to come. Steve cupped her cheek in his hand, kissing the tears off her face. He pulled a little jewelry box out of his pocket, opening it for her to see. She inhaled sharply.

"Oh my god, Steve," she whispered, gingerly reaching down to stroke the ring with a fingertip.

Inside the black velvet box was a simple, elegant ring. The gold band was smooth and unmarked, tapering up like a ribbon where the beautiful diamond was set. The pure white stone was gorgeous, sparkling like a star in the bright, summer moonlight.

"It's one of the few things I have of my mothers," Steve murmured, tucking a strand of hair behind Tina's ear. "The band anyway. She sold the diamond to pay for medication for me. We might need to get it resized for you. The diamond is something I picked out recently. Old and new. I thought it kind of goes with us," he smiled.

"It's just right," Tina said softly.

Steve slid it onto her finger.

"It fits," he said, slightly astonished.

"It's perfect."

Tina smiled and kissed her soldier on the cheek.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Tina."

He pulled his fingers through her curls for another moment.

"Mrs. Tina Rogers," he chuckled quietly.

"It has a nice ring to it," she agreed.

Steve nuzzled her cheek.

"Now you're all mine."

"I always was," Tina reminded him.

The Captain grinned.

"My closest companion has been replaced…I have to go break it to my shield later."

Tina laughed.

"I can still be a shield. Just for your heart," she suggested.

Steve placed his hands on her arms and pulled her closer.

"Tina Rogers, The Captain's shield."

* * *

**Fin**

**The first chapter of the sequel, The Captain's Cradle, is now up! Be sure to check it out :)**

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